Peace in Our Time: Generation X
by DC-MarvelGirl 1997
Summary: Volume 1 of Peace in Our Time: thirty-five-year-old Tony Stark and Professor Charles Xavier form a branch-off of Stark Industries called X-Corporation, a company that helps employ mutants in effort to help make the world better. But, when Tony's anti-mutant competitors form anti-mutant organizations, Tony and Xavier realize they need to form a team, hence, the X-men are formed!
1. Issue 1: X-Corporation

**A/N:**

 **Greetings everyone, Danielle, aka DC-MarvelGirl 1997 here! Today, I bring you my very first series related to X-men Comics titled Peace in Our Time! This story is in collaboration with one of my favorite X-men writers on here, MarvelMaster 616.**

 **Plot Summary: thirty** **-five-year-old Tony Stark and Professor Charles Xavier form a branch-off of Stark Industries called X-Corporation, a company that helps employ mutants in effort to help make the world better. But, when Tony's anti-mutant competitors form anti-mutant organizations, Tony and Xavier realize they need to form a team, hence, the X-men are formed!**

 **This series will work like a comic book, being titled with issue numbers similarly to how MarvelMaster 616 does his X-men Supreme series on this website, but, due to me being a college student, I cannot promise I will be posting weekly. I will be posting as frequently as I possibly can. I just want to give a huge thank-you to MarvelMaster 616. You've been great with helping me edit and giving me constructive criticism especially when writing this first chapter. You truly inspired me to start writing for X-men, so this story is dedicated to you! Depending on the response I get, I will post a sequel to this story and make it a full series! So there for, be sure to read, follow, favorite and most importantly of all, REVIEW! I thrive on reviews and I am open to any constructive criticism that any of you have.**

 **'This here means psychic communications and others' thoughts.'**

 **Remember, read, follow, favorite, review, and most of all, enjoy Peace in Our Time Volume 1! -**

 **XOXO, Danielle**

* * *

 **Issue 1: X-Corporation**

 **Manhattan, New York – X-Corporation Tower**

It was a crisp autumn day in Manhattan, New York, the clear skies being picturesque as they looked over X-Corporation Tower. Thirty-five-year-old Tony Stark, the prodigal son of Howard and Maria Stark, sat at his desk in the workshop space, a steaming cup of coffee at his desk along with half-empty bottles of vodka, brandy and other liquors. Attempting to cut cold turkey from alcoholism proved to be much more difficult than the young, billionaire playboy expected. In fact, at that moment, he was making the attempt at organizing his thoughts together, writing them down into his computer before he attempted tinkering with any of the his tech. He proceeded to type into his computer as he sipped his coffee, running a hand over his face as he breathed a heavy sigh.

 _Journal Entry 1,_

 _We are living in a world of conflict . . . a world filled with hatred, fear and anger, and these very things rule the world. We're facing trying times in this country known as the United States of America, and guess who has to deal with the brunt of it? Me._

 _My name is Tony Stark, the son of Howard and Maria Stark who owned and founded Stark Industries. My old man was quite the genius, having built Captain America's shield. Growing up, I had to listen to his stories of all the most amazing things that Captain America ever did, as though Dad had more pride in Steve Rogers than he did in his own son. However, my old man did manage to make his company a success story and me being his only son, was the heir to the company and had to take it over one day and follow in his footsteps._

 _Growing up with an alcoholic father definitely has its own set of problems. Mom tried protecting me the best that she could, but, even her very best didn't help sometimes. However, that came to a head when Dad came into business with a man named Professor Charles Xavier._

 _Charles Xavier is a mutant with telepathy – ability to read others thoughts, and Dad had found him when he'd been studying in Oxford after having left the military. Professor Xavier came from a wealthy family and was raised in Westchester, New York by British parents. Reason why his military career was put on hold was because he ended up suffering from cancer in the spine, which confined him to a wheelchair. After Xavier had quit the military, he went on to study at Oxford and became a PHD in medicine. The man himself being a mutant is constantly looking for ways to see how mutation can benefit the world and help it be better, stronger . . . needless to say, when Dad met Xavier, the two instantaneously became friends, and Dad even funded Xavier's trips when he'd go off to third-world countries to help people who were victims of severe trauma. Soon after their friendship was formed, Xavier and Dad went into business together and they founded a company called X-Corporation, a company that could potentially help mutants who were struggling with finding careers due to their mutations being so out of control. That was probably the most selfless thing that Dad did, considering how egotistical he was towards me. His alcoholism always managed to get the best of him, and oftentimes, he took it out on me. In many ways, Charles Xavier was more of a father to me than Dad was, because he was there to offer me his sympathy and his compassion and his empathy, which is something I will forever be grateful for in a sense._

 _However, this all turned a head when I was seventeen years old and Mom and Dad died in a car accident. That left me to be the one to inherit my dad's company and needing to be the one to take it over. Believe me; being in this man's office opens old wounds. It reminds me of the times where Dad would be neglectful towards Mom and me, but, I also know in many ways it's my responsibility. Working with Professor Xavier is definitely a plus, but, there are many underlying issues that continued to be problems for the both of us._

 _Professor Xavier being a mutant has faced a shit ton of discrimination in his life, like many mutants. Now, with Senator Edward Kelly having aspirations to become president in order to take the place of President Norman Osborn, and several of my competitors being anti-mutant, it's ultimately hurting my bottom line with both X-Corp and Stark Industries. People wouldn't dare take what we are trying to do seriously. Stark Industries is a weapons company, plain and simple. We manufacture and sell weapons to the US army. Professor Xavier having served this country is very patriotic himself; part of why he went into business with my old man in the first place. X-Corp was designed by my old man and the professor to potentially help mutants find job opportunities. Teaching, weapons manufacturing, medicine . . . you name it, we can help mutants have a career in it. In fact, we already have three mutants on our payroll already, in addition to several other humans that work for me: my assistant, Pepper Potts and my bodyguard/driver Happy Hogan._

 _The first mutant that got hired is a man named Forge, a brilliant mutant with high intellect who is extremely gifted with technology. Forge has been doing wonders for both X-Corp and Stark Industries, building several planes as means of transportation, and a computer to enhance Professor Xavier's telepathy called Cerebro. Despite Forge having been trained as a medicine man by his tribe that he was raised in as a child – he's of Native American descent – his brilliance with technology never ceases to please me, especially since he helped me with designing Friday, the computer software system that runs not only X-Corp Tower, but also Stark Tower and my large private home in California._

 _The second mutant that we have is Hank McCoy, a mutant doctor who is a genius in his own right. McCoy's mutation started off as him just thinking to have overly large hands and feet. Being a graduate of Harvard University at the bright age of sixteen years old, Hank managed to suppress his mutation with a serum he created. Unfortunately, the serum did not have the longest of lasting effects, and Hank's mutation became rather "beastly" – and by that I mean covering him in blue fur as well as giving him ape-like reflexes. Xavier had hired him feeling he'd be useful. Turns out, the big blue beast is useful, considering how skilled he is with technology and medicine, and is our greatest asset._

 _And lastly, we've got our newest hire, Warren Worthington III, who is twenty-two. Warren's mutation just simply gives him large, beautiful, feathery wings. He managed to somehow hide it from his parents; however, both his parents are mutant-hating bigots who own Worthington Industries and Worthington Pharmaceuticals. Warren's parents are looking to develop a "cure" for mutant powers. This definitely worries me considering they are not only are they one of my biggest competitors, but, when they learned of their son being a mutant, Warren Worthington Jr. and Katherine Worthington cut their son off and disowned him. Warren's a disgrace to the Worthington family name. So therefor, Warren had no place left to go, and he was sought out by Xavier, who offered Warren a chance to be employed by us. That means his employment at this company is the only thing that he has left in life . . . well, that, and his girlfriend Candice "Candy" Southern, who is surprisingly accepting of Warren's mutation, and God bless her for that, because we need more people in the world like her._

 _Now, this leads to me and Xavier looking for more mutants to join our cause. The only things we really can hope and pray to God for is that my competitors do not try and do something that could destroy our reputation. People already don't take me seriously as is, which is to be understood considering I am following in my old man's steps of being an alcoholic. And considering last week I was scolded by not only Professor Xavier, but also Pepper for making a "drunken slob" out of myself at my birthday party – Pepper's words, not Xavier's – I know now I've got a lot of making up to do. For Christ sake, Pepper never lets me forget that I have responsibilities to focus on, but ultimately, the only thing I care about at this point is keeping this company afloat somehow. I just know that if this fails, it'll prove my competitors right . . . that I am nothing more than the drunken fool that cannot function for shit._

Tony saved his journal entry on his computer and proceeded to finish off his morning coffee, knowing he had a long work day ahead of him. Needing to manage two companies, especially in the wake of growing anti-mutant sentiment, was hard enough on the young man. Alcohol seemed to often be the easy way out. He was scolded by Pepper for that all the time, and even Xavier was starting to have little tolerance for it since he and Tony were in business together. Tony felt the urgency and temptation to reach for a bottle of Jack Daniels, and just as he was about to, Pepper Potts, his strawberry-blonde, blue-eyed assistant, walked into the room, holding paperwork with a tight lip, dressed in a black pant suit.

"Not today, Mr. Stark," Pepper said in a tone Tony knew not to argue with. "You've got actual work to do, and besides, Xavier and Hank, they're out picking up two of our newest recruits for this company, so you might as well straighten up before they get back."

"Who are the recruits?" asked Tony.

"Scott Summers and Jean Grey," Pepper said. "From what Xavier gathered, these kids' history, it's nothing pretty. Both are seventeen. However, their lives aren't the best, and that's putting it kindly. Scott is the son a military test pilot and military scientist, Christopher and Katherine Summers. His parents died in a plane crash, and he and his younger brother Alex were both separated. Alex was adopted while Scott was in a coma for a full year, but, the two manage to have a brotherly relationship they keep in touch. Scott's currently in Claremont Orphanage in Alaska because no families want him; his mutant power of releasing concussive optic blast beams makes him a danger to anyone around him. Jean Grey was born to college professor John Grey and Dr. Elaine Grey. A car crash on a rainy night killed her mother and father, and Jean was separated from her siblings and was in a coma for three years. When she awoke, she destroyed the hospital and she was placed in the Morrison Mental Institution. Her powers are all psionic – telekinesis and telepathy; Xavier and Hank are assuming that her powers manifested after witnessing the deaths of her parents. Xavier is picking her up first because he was recommended to the mental hospital because of his experience as a mutant. So therefor, when Xavier gets here with Scott and Jean, you better be cleaned up and prepared, Tony . . . Capiche?" Pepper raised an eyebrow at her boss, feeling the need to hold him accountable yet again.

Tony nodded at Pepper, taking in the information he'd just heard about Scott and Jean. He felt a wave of sympathy for both kids. Jean and Scott having lost both their parents, he could easily sympathize with that, especially Jean, who had to _feel_ her parents dying inside her head. He could only hope and pray that Xavier would succeed and not fail those kids like how society failed them.

* * *

 **Morrison Mental Institution – Newark, New Jersey**

Professor Charles Xavier and Dr. Henry McCoy found themselves in Newark, New Jersey at the Morrison Mental Institution, where they were about to pick up someone who would hopefully be their first recruit. Working with Tony Stark to build up X-Corporation was something Charles Francis Xavier had devoted his time to since Tony had been seventeen years of age after his parents had gotten killed in a car wreck. However, the prodigal son who had grown into a young man had the tendencies his father Howard had. Tony being an alcoholic attempting at cutting cold turkey was something that Xavier found hard to watch, considering Tony still had a lot of growing up to do as a thirty-five-year-old. He was still a kid, especially with his mindset. He was brilliant, he was smart, but, he needed direction, and that was why Xavier felt the responsibility to be that source of guidance for Tony, who was rather self-serving. Xavier understood that mutant discrimination ultimately hurt Tony's bottom line, and that was why it was utmost important that they come up with a solution.

Currently, Professor Xavier and Hank were going down the hallway with the doctor of Jean Grey, Dr. Grant Kirby, who was talking to the both of them regarding Jean's condition.

"So you're saying she's been a patient here since she was nine?" asked Hank.

"Yes," said Dr. Kirby. "Her life's been pretty rough, and that is putting it very generously. A severe car crash on a rainy night killed her mother and father, her father being a beloved college professor of Bergen Community College in Hackensack, and her mother being a successful doctor at St. Joseph's Hospital in Wayne. As a matter of fact, Jean was separated from her siblings, her older brothers Liam and Roger, her older sisters Sarah and Julia, and her identical twin sister Madelyne who had been sent to a separate mental hospital for experiencing similar symptoms as Jean. It truly is terrible, but, no matter what we do, we cannot seem to help her. And it's sad, because she's such a sweet kid," he explained.

"I understand her circumstances, Dr. Kirby. But, I have an explanation. Do you know what a mutant is?" asked Charles.

The doctor nodded.

"Then you would understand that it is simply a person with an extra gene called the X-gene. I think that Jean might possibly be one with psionic abilities, Dr. Kirby," Charles explained.

"And you really think that you are more equipped for helping her?" asked the doctor in a serious tone.

"I believe that we can find some way to help her, but, we won't be curing her. Her powers; her abilities, they're part of her. All we can do at this point is just trying to helping her learn to control her abilities," said Hank.

Dr. Kirby nodded nervously. "Well, I'm sure myself and the rest of the staff would be happy to release her into your custody. This girl doesn't have any family, no relatives willing to take her in. She's a mess. We've just resorted to drugging her at this point because there's not much any of us can do for her," he said, and proceeded to lead them down the hallway to Jean's room. The duo entered the room. In the small space resided a cot with a blanket and pillow, a rudimentary toilet, and an emaciated redheaded girl who was rocking herself backward and forward, clutching her head and her face in her knees. It was a pitiful sight for Professor Xavier and Hank McCoy. Xavier nodded for Hank and Dr. Kirby to give him a few minutes alone with Jean.

"Jean Grey?" asked the professor as he entered the room. He could only imagine that the crazed thoughts of other patients were not helping her, especially considering she was full-on sobbing.

'I'm a freak . . . nobody wants me! Mommy and Daddy are dead . . . my siblings are gone . . . my twin sister Maddie . . . what's wrong with me?!'

"Jean . . . Jean Grey?" Charles asked her again.

Slowly but surely, Jean looked up to reveal her tear-stained face and watery green eyes. Her lips were swollen from crying.

"Who-Who are you?" she whispered, her voice shaking.

"I'm Professor Charles Xavier," the professor said, going closer to Jean in his wheelchair. "I'm here to help you."

"No," Jean said, shaking her head as more tears rolled down her face. "No . . . Nobody's able to-to help me!"

"That's not true, Jean," Charles whispered, coming closer to her as objects in the room started to shake all around them. He could just simply tell that Jean's telekinesis was starting to flare up, and he knew that he had to take care of it right away. "You are not sick, Jean, believe me. I know exactly how you feel. All those voices in your head . . . they're not voices."

"H-How do you know h-how I feel?" Jean asked, tears continuing to fall from her eyes and saturate her face.

Professor Xavier simply cupped Jean's face into his hand, using his thumb to wipe her tears away. 'I know how everybody feels,' he told her telepathically.

This time, when Jean heard a voice, this voice seemed to block out all the other loud thoughts of the mental institute patients, and it sounded a lot softer, more controlled than what she'd heard since she was nine years old.

"You're-You're like me?" Jean asked, feeling herself slowly starting to calm.

"Yes, Jean, very much like you," said Xavier around a soft smile. "And if you want the chance, I can help you learn about these special abilities that you have; your gifts. Would you like the chance to have that?"

Jean swallowed, considering her options. She could stay here in this miserable place and suffer, or, she could go into custody with this man who was offering to help her. Nobody had ever offered to help her without a cost before, and here was this kind man, telling her that she could trust him and was offering to take her under his wing. It was nothing short of a miracle to Jean Grey, who'd suffered enough for far too long.

Slowly but surely, Jean nodded her head, taking in the fact that she was going to leave this place . . . that she was going to go with this kind man and have something better. This time, tears of gratefulness filled her eyes as she struggled to voice her gratitude.

"Yes . . . please, help me," Jean whispered, leaning further into Xavier's touch as she felt him slowly wrapping his arms around her in a comforting embrace, something she hadn't had in years.

* * *

 **Up next: Out of Hell**


	2. Issue 2: Out of Hell

**A/N:**

 **Okay, everyone, I just want to point out that I am disappointed with the lacking of reviews on this story. I really value reviews and constructive criticism. Even if you're just passing by, leave a comment on the chapter and let me know what you think. Here we go with issue #2: Out of Hell!-**

 **Danielle**

 _In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier, business partner of Tony Stark, is the world's most powerful telepath. Co-owner of X-Corporation Tower, a company designed to help secure mutants' futures, Professor Charles Xavier and his associate, Hank McCoy, have taken in his adoptive daughter, Jean Grey, a former mental patient with psychic abilities who lost her family in a car accident years prior. Now, as they prepare to expand the company, Professor Xavier prepares to take in his next legal ward: an orphaned seventeen-year-old named Scott Summers._

* * *

 **Issue 2: Out of Hell**

 **Claremont Orphanage – Nome, Alaska**

The cold, brisk air of Alaska hit Professor Xavier, Hank McCoy and Jean Grey hard as they exited the Blackbird. Jean was hit with the shock of the cold winds that came even though it was only the middle of October. After some mental blocks had been placed on her mind, Jean went with Xavier, who signed the paperwork to take her in as his legal ward. Hank provided her with clean clothes and put the plane on autopilot before giving Jean a quick check-up. She was highly undernourished. Getting her eating again was going to be a challenge. Jean shivered as they walked up to the Claremont Orphanage, where Professor Xavier had said that they were going to be picking someone up. Jean's shudders were violent despite the heavy, warmed winter jacket around her. Hank seemed to pick up on this, and wrapped one of his big, blue, furry arms around her shoulders, hugging her against his side in effort to try and keep her warm.

When they entered the orphanage, Professor Xavier approached the front desk to talk with the owner of the orphanage, Stan Yost. The man looked up to see Xavier, Jean and Hank approaching, and seemed to be alarmed, particularly by Hank.

"Mr. Yost, my name is Charles Xavier," said the professor as he approached the man at the desk.

"Y-Yes, how may I help you?" Yost asked.

"I actually wish to speak with one of the boys that live here. His name is Scott Summers," said the professor.

Yost seemed to pale at the mentioning of Scott, something that Hank and Charles had been expecting. "Wait . . . did I hear you correctly?"

"Yes, you did," said Hank. "Please, sir, we just wish to speak to the boy."

"I'm afraid that you would not want to do that. Scott's just a lost cause; he really is, but, it really is sad. He lost his parents in a plane crash, and it really is unfortunate because both his parents were involved in the military and they worked on airplanes. He was separated from his little brother, Alex. However, the fortunate thing is that they still manage to have a relationship . . . they talk on the phone at least several times a day because we found out Alex had been adopted by a loving family that lives out in California, so we managed to contact Alex's foster family because we wanted to make sure Scott at least had something good in his life. They tell each other a lot. As tragic as it is, at least he still has a bond with his brother, and they maintain it. It's not like Scott has absolutely nothing left in life . . . we wanted to make that very clear to him from day one. Scott was sent here because he completely destroyed the hospital he'd been staying in after waking from a coma. The only way I can describe it is some sort of strange optic blast . . . the children here are terrified of him because whenever he opens his eyes, he destroys everything in his path. This boy is truly the definition of a loaded gun. In fact, one man actually tried adopting him and using him for diamond smuggling. But, when the authorities learned of that man's intentions with Scott, Scott got assigned a new social worker and was sent back here until a family is willing to adopt him. I honestly do feel badly for him because how can you not? But, he staying here is wearing us all down. We just do not have the resources to keep him here much longer," said Yost, the frustration evident in his voice despite him trying to hide it.

"I understand sir. But, you see, Scott's a special interest of mine. Just let us see him, please. I might be able to help him," said Xavier.

Yost nodded. Hank didn't need to be a mind-reader to know that the man was relieved to release Scott to somebody else's care. While Hank understood that Yost was just simply frustrated, it angered him slightly that Scott was being considered a waste of space. It took a lot to get Hank to a place of anger due to his pacifist nature. He looked to Jean, who continued to stand next to him shaking slightly, but, her tremors seemed to have calmed considerably. The reason why Hank and Charles had decided it would be a good idea for Jean to come along with picking up Scott was because she came from that place of being young and having nobody being there for her.

Charles, Jean and Hank walked down the halls towards Scott's room. Scott was one of the only boys that stayed in the orphanage that slept alone in his own room. He could not have roommates because of his mutation, which further isolated him from everyone else and made him an outcast. Yost opened the door to Scott's bedroom.

"Scott, I'm coming in. There's somebody here to see you," said Yost, before allowing Jean, Hank and Xavier inside the room.

In the room resided an emaciated, dark-haired teenage boy, about seventeen, sitting on the bed and a bandage covering his eyes. He was wearing clothes that were too loose on him, and he had several bruises on his face that were fading, most likely from abuse in his previous foster home that he'd just gotten released from only a week or so ago. Jean felt a surge of sympathy . . . not too long ago, she'd been in this place of feeling so alone, of feeling as though nobody cared.

"Can we have a moment alone with him please?" Hank asked.

Yost nodded and proceeded to back out of the room to give them some privacy.

"Scott . . . Scott Summers?" Xavier asked quietly.

Slowly, the boy's head moved upward to acknowledge their presence. His senses seemed heightened due to his lacking of ability to see. Nonetheless, he looked worried of the fact that several people were here with him.

"Who are you?" the teen asked his voice slightly tense. Jean could sense that he was holding it together pretty strong, but, she could tell inside that Scott was apprehensive and scared.

"My name is Professor Charles Xavier. With me is my employee Hank McCoy, and my ward, Jean Grey," Xavier said. "I'm here to help you, Scott."

Scott seemed surprised upon hearing that. "What's the catch?" he asked; his guard was up. Nobody had ever genuinely offered to help him. The last foster home he'd been to, his foster dad had treated him horribly. He had the fading bruises on his skin to prove it. The last thing that he wanted was repeat that adventure again, considering that that had ended about a week ago.

"There's no catch, Scott," Hank said. "All three of us we've all been where you are. We know exactly what it is that you are going through right now."

"How do you know?" Scott asked, wondering how it was possible for anyone to understand what it was like to be used.

'Because, son . . . we're just like you,' Xavier said to the teenager telepathically.

Scott froze up upon hearing Xavier's voice out of shock. "Did I just hear you in my head?" he asked.

"Yes. Scott I have telepathy," Xavier said. "What you are, what you have isn't abnormal, son. You simply have a mutation – an extra piece of DNA called the X-gene which grants you special powers. It's a gift, Scott."

"It doesn't feel like a gift," Scott said in a voice not much louder than a whisper. His voice sounded a little stronger than before, considering he now knew that he was with people that he could trust for once.

"It never does at first," Hank said. He maneuvered himself forward so that he could kneel by the teen, reaching his hand forward. Scott's hand brushed against Hank's.

"Is that fur?" asked Scott, curiosity in his tone more than anything else.

"Yes. It is part of my mutation, Scott. My father worked at a nuclear plant and I was exposed to radiation as a boy. It permanently changed my genetics that were already X-factor positive to begin with," Hank explained.

Jean took in the sight before her. For some reason, she felt some strange yet strong connection with this boy. She could pick up on his thoughts . . . images of a plane crash, of Scott waking in a hospital and destroying the roof after waking from a coma. She walked closer to him, feeling the need to be close. Scott seemed to sense Jean coming over to him.

"Who is this?" Scott started asking.

"This is Jean Grey," Xavier said. "She's like me. Telepathic but also telekinetic; we picked her up on the way here to get you. If you give me and Hank a chance, we can help you, Scott."

"Hi, nice to meet you," Jean said. She had a slight smile on her face as she extended her hand forward to shake Scott's. The teen returned the gesture, and he felt a rush of warmth coming over him as he touched Jean's hand. In fact, when he touched Jean's hand to shake it, he seemed to actually calm at the physical contact.

"So what do you say, Scott? Would you give me the honor of helping you?" Xavier asked quietly.

Scott nodded instantly. As long as he was away from this place, he did not care. The fact that somebody was actually willing to take him and be his caretaker, it meant more to him than he thought it would have.

"Yes, thank you," Scott said the gratefulness in his tone evident, sounding a little bit breathless. "Though, when we get to wherever it is we're going . . . I'll need to call my brother first thing; he'll want to hear about this. He'll be glad to hear it, you know?"

"Absolutely, Scott," Xavier said.

Jean felt a pang of sadness and maybe a little bit of envy hit her chest. She hadn't spoken to her siblings in years since she'd been separated from them, but, then she realized that she had nothing to be jealous of. Scott was in the same boat as her; he'd lost both his parents in a terrible accident, too. She felt selfish in a way for resenting the fact that Scott still had a relationship with his younger sibling. It reminded Jean of what she yearned to have with her own siblings, especially her identical twin sister Madelyne. However, she also knew that Scott's situation was nothing to envy at all. They both came from unfortunate circumstances . . . there was definitely a kindred spirit forming between the two of them.

"Alright then. Let's get going," Hank said. He and Jean helped Scott off the bed while Xavier went off to deal with signing the paperwork and applications for adoption. As Scott held onto Jean's hand, he felt a surge of comfort filling him. Jean seemed equally relaxed as she gave his hand a squeeze, a small smile on her face. It took over an hour for Xavier to sign his name on all the necessary applications. However, once he was done, he, Hank and Jean guided Scott outside to the Blackbird.

"Alright Scott, we'll make our way over to the jet," said Xavier as he led the way.

"Wait-What?" Scott asked the fear evident in his voice despite him trying his hardest to hide it and put up a tough front. "Planes?" The last time he'd been on an airplane, it hadn't ended well at all. He could still remember the smell of something burning, the plane catching on fire as it suddenly became harder to breathe.

"I'm sorry Scott, I should have figured you'd have a fear of flying," said Xavier.

"No, I'll be okay . . . I can't keep avoiding it forever," said Scott, though he still had his reservations about boarding an airplane. He swallowed hard to try and pull himself together. He knew that he would ultimately have to board an airplane in his life again, and that he could not keep himself from doing so for the rest of his life. "I need to board a plane eventually, sir."

"Scott, it's alright," Jean whispered. She squeezed his hand to reassure him. Scott calmed considerably.

"Jean's right, Scott. There's nothing to fear. You'll be perfectly safe, son," Xavier said softly.

Scott took a deep breath to calm down. Jean squeezed his hand a bit harder as she guided them to their seats. While Scott still seemed apprehensive, he didn't appear to be as jumpy as he did when it was first mentioned he'd be boarding a plane for the first time in years. In fact, with Jean, he looked comfortable. Hank proceeded to get the jet into the air and on autopilot before he went over to where Scott and Jean were sitting so that he could check the boy over with an external look. Hank gently pressed against Scott's ribs to feel for broken bones; luckily, nothing was broken. He was undernourished and dehydrated, much like Jean. Other than that, he was alright and was going to be just fine. Suddenly, that was the moment a video message came in from Tony, who was calling them from X-Corporation Tower.

" _Hey, McCoy, old man, did you pick the kids up?"_ Tony asked on the video feed.

"Yes, Mr. Stark, we are on our way home," Xavier said.

" _Great to know. Also, Hank, Dr. MacTaggart is flying in from Muir Island. Is it okay if she sets up in your lab?"_ Tony asked.

"Uh, yes, Tony; she knows her way around," said Hank as he continued to give Scott an external examination. He proceeded to speak to Friday. "Friday, tell Moira to prep the medical bays; Scott and Jean are going to need the full treatment."

" _Consider it done, Mr. McCoy,"_ Friday said.

Scott turned his head towards Jean, almost as if to look at her even though he could not see. Jean smiled despite knowing Scott's vision was shrouded by the bandage surrounding his eyes. They could still hardly believe that after years of being outcast from society, of being treated like freaks, that they were finally going to be in a place where they were accepted. They were finally going to have a home, something that they hadn't had in years. It made them both feel a strong sense of relief and security as they continued gripping onto each other's hands tightly, as if they were afraid of letting go. It was a sight that Hank and Xavier couldn't take their eyes off of as they sat up front in the cockpit, flying the plane back towards X-Corporation Tower to get Scott and Jean medical attention for any injuries that they had. The two teens were leaning against each other, Jean's eyes closing on their own accord as she allowed herself to rest. Her mind was exhausted after years of needing to hear others' thoughts inside her head and thinking that she was crazy. For once, she felt as though she wasn't crazy. She felt almost human for a change. As Hank and Xavier continued looking at them, they could sense something between the two kids . . . they didn't know exactly what it was, but those two were definitely forming some kind of connection.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Warren's Room**

Many would think that being the son of a billionaire was a dream come true . . . everyone looked at it from the perspective of thinking that everything was perfect. But, for Warren Worthington III, he truly felt like the exception to this.

The young, twenty-two-year-old college senior truly felt lucky that he was having the chance at a career with X-Corporation. However, the fact was, he was the disgraced son of Warren Worthington, Jr. and Katherine Worthington, who would never accept him for his mutation. Warren's mutation, as far as he knew, wasn't anything bad. In fact, having wings was probably something that most kids dreamed of. But, his parents had decided to disown him and make an attempt at creating a "cure" for mutants. The whole thought of his parents betraying their own blood like that disgusted him deeply. However, he also knew that as long as he was with X-Corporation, Tony Stark and Charles Xavier, he had a chance at a future.

Warren being in his senior year at Pace University in Manhattan meant that he was one year closer to getting a business degree, which meant that he was one more year away from being a huge asset to the company. While Warren wasn't the brightest when it came to sciences, he knew he was brilliant with math and finances.

Warren stretched his back out, allowing his huge, white, feathery wings to stretch out as well. One benefit to living in X-Corporation Tower was that he could roam free with his wings exposed, something he hadn't been ever able to do when living with his mother and father. That was one of the many great things about being with X-Corporation. For once, Warren was free from persecution.

That was the moment Pepper came into the room with Tony.

"Hey, War," said Tony.

"What is it Tony? I'm up to my neck with school work here. Pace doesn't just hand out degrees to people, you know?" Warren said.

"We just came to tell you that two of our newest recruits are arriving and that you should be out here greeting them," said Pepper.

"Who are the recruits?" asked Warren as he got up from his desk, abandoning his mathematics homework.

"Scott Summers and Jean Grey, both are seventeen. Unfortunately, they do not come from the best of circumstances, something that I am sure you can sympathize with," said Pepper as she handed Warren the files on Jean and Scott which were digitally on an iPad. When Warren got a good look at the kind of lives that these kids had up until the age of seventeen, he had the sensation of feeling sick to his stomach. When Pepper said that Scott and Jean came from not the greatest of circumstances, she wasn't kidding at all.

"Yeah, yeah, you weren't kidding when you said it, Miss Potts," said Warren. "These two, they've been put through so much. I mean, you'd have to blind to not be able to put yourself in their shoes. I'm just lucky that it was just my parents disowning me and cutting me off from the family name when they learned I was a mutant."

"Yeah, I know," said Tony. He felt a wave of sympathy for both Scott and Jean, Jean especially, who had to feel her parents dying when her powers had manifested. They could only hope that those kids were not past helping.

That was the moment a private plane landed down on the landing strip, and it opened up to reveal Moira MacTaggart as well as Tony's bodyguard and chauffeur, Harold "Happy" Hogan.

"Mr. Stark," said Happy as he passed them with Moira.

"Happy, Moira, glad you both are here," Tony said.

"Likewise, lad," Moira said as she went off to the medical labs to set up. "Besides, after this, I have to head back to Muir Island and get back to Sean, David and Rahne."

"Of course, Doc," Tony said, nodding curtly at Moira. Moira had been a huge asset to X-Corporation. She had at one point been Xavier's wife and together, they had a son named David Kevin Xavier who started experiencing his psionic mutant abilities at birth. Xavier had been blackmailed into divorcing Moira by a man named Joseph MacTaggart who wanted Moira for himself, however, Moira ended up divorcing Joseph when he became highly abusive towards her and David. David had a multitude of psionic abilities which included telepathy, telekinesis, energy and matter manipulation, body consumption and reality warping and suffered from dissociative identity disorder. David's multiple personalities that lived inside his mind along with his ability of warping reality made him certifiably dangerous. That meant David needing to go through intense therapies that Moira and her fiancé Sean Cassidy administered to him, but, Professor Xavier was involved with every single parenting decision and he and Moira had a very healthy relationship for a divorced couple. It was unconventional, but, it was their way of making it clear to their son that their divorce had nothing to do with him, and that they were going to continue with being a family no matter what case there may be. That meant Xavier coming to Muir Island at least once to twice a week and being the father that David needed him to be. In a way, David was more lucky than most, because not only did he have his biological parents, but, he also had an adoptive sister in Rahne Sinclair and a loving step-father-figure in Sean Cassidy. It was definitely a case of two people making the best out of a horrible circumstance.

Shortly after Moira made her way to the medical labs to set up her equipment, the Blackbird landed in the hanger. Tony beat Xavier to the punch by entering the plane to greet them.

"I take it you were successful?" Tony asked.

"Yes, Mr. Stark, we can assure you of that," said Hank as he got up out of the pilot's chair. Tony caught sighting of Scott and Jean from the corner of his eye. They were both very skinny and looked as though they hadn't had a decent meal in years. Jean's clothes were fitting too big on her, which was to be expected given they belonged to Warren's girlfriend Candy who was generous enough to lend them. The sight of them made Tony feel discomfort, considering he had been in their situation, though their situation was worse than his. They had been used, manipulated and given false hope for years. Tony could see also from the corner of his eye that Scott had scars on his wrists . . . he knew the signs of somebody making the attempt to kill themselves, and it was clear to him that Scott had attempted suicide on more than one occasion. Tony, before having started becoming addicted to alcohol, had contemplated suicide on more than one occasion especially after the deaths of his parents. Part of why Tony had started heavily drinking especially in college was because he'd needed a coping mechanism at the time . . . it was a time where he was struggling with low self-esteem especially after the deaths of his mother and father, because his father had never once said he'd loved him. In fact, when Tony had been in middle school, his father had shipped him off to boarding school and didn't show him any affection whatsoever. In many ways, Professor Xavier was a better father than Tony's own father.

"Moira's in the med lab, Xavier," Tony said, keeping his tone as quiet as he could. "Besides I think as soon as we get Scott and Jean settled in we should get them acquainted with Warren and Forge."

Xavier nodded in agreement. "Yes, indeed," he said as he turned his head to look at Scott and Jean. They both appeared to be asleep in their seats, Jean's head on Scott's chest and their fingers inches away from each other, as though they'd fallen asleep holding hands to reassure each other that they were not alone. Both teens were exhausted after years of not being able to get a decent level of sleep. Jean had dark, purple shadows underneath her eyes and she was very pale. As Tony exited the plane, Scott and Jean stirred in their seats, starting to awaken as Xavier maneuvered his wheelchair to be closer to them. He could sense their anxiety even though they knew that they were in a place that was safe for once.

"Scott . . . Jean?" the professor said as he came closer to them.

Jean opened her eyes. "Yeah?" she asked.

"We're home now, alright?" Xavier said quietly. "I just want to take you both to the medical labs here. My ex-wife Moira is here to tend to you both and give you a physical."

Scott shook his head, his dread flooding him. He had a phobia of hospitals ever since he'd destroyed the hospital roof upon waking from a coma after the plane accident that killed his mom and dad. Jean had been forced underneath electric shock therapies by doctors in the mental hospital. How did they know that this woman wasn't going to treat them any differently than how they'd been treated all their lives? Jean tensed up, flinching hard at the mention of the word "physical".

"It's okay," Xavier told them. He leaned a hand on Scott's knee, patting it sympathetically. "Moira will go slow and she won't be anything less than gentle. Trust me. She understands."

Jean was still quiet as a mouse and tense, biting her lower lip which was cracked and bleeding from dehydration. "H-How do we know she won't t-try and . . . and . . .?" she started to ask, her voice shaking.

"Jean, I can assure you Moira won't take advantage of you. Believe me. She's remarkable. In fact, she took in a mutant of her own as her legal ward, a twelve-year-old named Rahne Sinclair who has been where you are," the professor tried to assure them as Warren entered the plane, his wings fully exposed. He walked over to them, giving his wings a slight flap.

"Hey, Professor," Warren said. Jean looked up to see the blonde, billionaire-playboy, winged mutant walking over to them. Warren could see her nervousness and apprehension as he came over to kneel in front of her and Scott. "Let me talk to them, please."

Xavier nodded and proceeded to give Jean, Warren and Scott some privacy. He figured that if anything, Warren would be the next best thing. He knew what it was like to feel out of control from his own mutation.

"Hey," Warren said quietly. "It's okay . . ."

"Who are you?" Scott asked; his guard back up to try and hide his fear behind a stoic front. However, Warren could see right through it. You'd have to be crazy to not be apprehensive or nervous in a situation like this: being in an unfamiliar environment and being told you were about to be examined by a doctor you'd never met.

"My name's Warren. Listen, I know you two are scared out of your minds, okay? I get it. We live in a world where there are people with _superpowers_ . . . okay? We're mutants. And I have wings on my back, feathered _wings_ , none of this makes sense. _Nothing_ in our lives makes any sense at all," Warren told them. "You think that there is no way to even attempt understanding any of it. Trust me when I say that there _is_ a way. Just give Dr. MacTaggart a shot. She can help you further. I get the fact that you were used; you were manipulated all your lives into believing nothing would ever get better. I would know because my parents, they _hate_ the fact that I am a mutant and they cut me off from the family because I wouldn't accept taking a "cure" to remove my wings permanently. So I understand what it's like to be treated like you're a mistake, like you don't matter. But you _do_ matter."

Both Jean and Scott took in what Warren was saying, digesting his words. The way he spoke to them, he spoke to them like they were human. It was something that they hadn't had the luxury of having for nearly ten years. It meant more to Scott and Jean than words could describe.

"I'm saying this because, Dr. MacTaggart, the professor, Hank; these are people that genuinely want to help you," Warren said. "For us, mutants, that's a very rare thing. There are not that many people out there that care about people like they do. They truly do have your best interests at heart and they'll never take advantage of you when you're at your weakest. It's going to be okay."

"Okay," Jean whispered.

* * *

 **Up next: Second Chances**


	3. Issue 3: Second Chances

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier and his business partner, Tony Stark, own X-Corporation, a company that they hope to use to secure the futures of mutants across the United States. Professor Xavier has already adopted and recruited two new members: Jean Grey and Scott Summers, two orphaned teens who come from unfortunate circumstances. Professor Xavier has enlisted the help of his ex-wife, Dr. Moira MacTaggart, to help Scott and Jean and see the extent of their abilities._

* * *

 **Issue 3: Second Chances**

 **X-Corporation Tower – Medical Laboratory**

For the next hour or so, Scott and Jean found themselves in the medical labs of X-Corp Tower, being examined thoroughly by Moira MacTaggart, who additionally wanted to run some tests on them to figure out their mutations. Jean was the first one to be examined, and according to Moira, Jean's psionic abilities were growing at a rather rapid pace and at a scale that was unimaginable, which meant that she would need extensive tutoring from Professor Xavier. After Jean's examination was completed, Scott was next; however, part of his examination meant Moira observing his optic blasts.

Moira proceeded to take a sample of blood from Scott to run a DNA test. Once that was completed, she proceeded to speak.

"Alright, Scott, from what I can tell, lad your mutation allows ye to harness solar energy and release it from your eyes in the form of an optic energy blast, just from what Xavier told me," Moira said. "I would have to, as part of the examination, see your powers first hand to see if Hank and I can come up with a solution where ye would be able to see."

"Yes," Scott said. "I've been blind for so long, I think it's high time that I'm allowed to see, for once."

"And from what I can tell, your mutation is out of control because after that plane crash ye were caught in, ye ended up getting permanent brain damage. This could be a reason why." Moira continued feeding Scott fluids through an IV.

That was the moment Tony came into the room with Warren.

"How's it looking, Doc?" asked Tony.

"From what I can tell, Scott has permanent brain damage. This is what makes his mutation so out of control to the point where he cannot see," Moira said.

"Well, thankfully we have the resources here. Besides, if you need to examine the blasts, the basement is reinforced steel," Tony said. "Nothing down there will be destroyed, as far as I know."

"Are you sure one hundred percent, Mr. Stark?" asked Scott. Scott being seventeen years of age, he had a maturity to him that belied his being a high school teenager. He was extremely polite and from what Tony could tell Scott was a great kid. He could only assume that it came from Scott being the son of a military pilot.

"Absolutely, Scott; but, I have to say this about your parents, I just want to thank them for their service to this great country," Tony said.

Scott nodded. It felt good that at least someone was acknowledging the fact that his parents had been war heroes. He couldn't help but get a little bit emotional when he thought about his mom and dad.

"Alright, I think it's time that we examine the strength of these blasts," Moira said.

Warren nodded and proceeded to help Scott off the examination table in the med lab, and he, Scott, Moira, Tony, Hank and Jean proceeded to make their way down to the basement. The basement was where the professor's computer Cerebro was located, as well as Forge's workshop space and a secluded section that Forge was working on called "the Danger Room" due the fact that the basement was so vast in space. They got into the elevator and made their way down to the basement of the building.

When they got there, they could hear Forge tinkering away in the area that he'd made his workshop. According to Forge, he was working on power inhibiting collars that would be safe for people to wear long-term, something that was vital. This was especially since X-Corporation worked with Canadian-American mutant team Alpha Flight, a team that arrested criminals – mutant and human alike – in the Canadian and Northern American areas and shipped them to Rikers Island where they were adding a mutant wing in the prison for mutant prisoners. Some of those prisoners included the King Pin himself, Wilson Fisk, who had just gotten arrested for supplying out-of-date medicine to people who were suffering from sickness and just getting sicker by taking the medication. Wilson Fisk was a lot more dangerous and corrupt than most mutants, and he didn't even have superpowers. It was extremely essential and a very dangerous job, which made the power dampeners all the more important. It was something that could very well potentially help make mutants look a lot better in the eye of the public. However, that didn't mean they did not have to put up with the wrath of Daily Bugle editor J. Jonah Jameson who did his own fair share of mutant bashing, blaming mutants for every single problem in the world. But J.J Jameson was the least of Tony Stark's problems, especially since Jameson was in a way viewed as crooked by most of the people of New York.

"Alright, Scott, the first step towards understanding one's mutation is actually learning the extent of it. Only then, we can begin the process of teaching you how to control it," said Professor Xavier. "So I want you to actually take your bandages off so we can have a look at what we're dealing with. What I would like you to do is face the wall that is right in front of you. It is all reinforced steel so not too much damage will be done at all."

"This place had been used as a bomb shelter, Slim," Tony said. "So you've got nothing to worry about at all."

Scott hesitantly took his bandages off his face. Jean got a look of Scott's face . . . he looked so young with his eyes tightly shut, but, it did strike Jean that he _was_ young, the same exact age as her. They'd be seniors in high school at this point, at least. Jean proceeded to place her hand on the boy's shoulder to reassure him that she was behind him.

"You can open your eyes, Scott. There's nothing to fear," said Hank.

That was the moment Scott's eyelids opened, and the instant that happened, a burst of concussive, red beams of light shot out of his eyes. Jean's jaw dropped open. Tony's eyes grew wide. The kid was the definition of a living weapon. He had two bazooka guns behind each of his eyes, complete raw power.

"Holy shit," whispered Tony as Forge came out of his workshop to view what was going on. Forge even seemed startled by Scott's power. That was the moment Scott's eyes slammed shut.

"How much damage did I cause?" Scott asked.

"Just a dent in the wall . . . nothing that cannot be fixed, from what I can tell," said Tony.

"Holy cow!" Warren exclaimed.

Jean's jaw was still dropped open in shock. She could hardly believe her eyes.

"Okay, this is . . . this is something different," said Forge.

"You bet your ass it is," Tony said.

"Language!" Beast said.

"Wait, wait, wait, let's take a moment to take in the fact that the big blue beast just said "language"?!" asked Warren.

"I know, it just slipped out," Beast said. "Moira, I would suggest we make our way back up to medical labs and we start collecting some data immediately."

"I can agree with that, lad," Moira said as she, Professor Xavier and Beast made their way out of the basement. However, once they were in the elevator, Xavier had something to ask of Moira.

"Moira, I just . . . I need to ask you. How is David doing?" Professor Xavier asked.

"His powers are growing on a scale unlike anything I've ever seen before, probably more so than Jean's from what I can see. I mean, he has the power to essentially have anything that his heart desires," said Moira. "But, I am happy to see Rahne keeps him rather high spirited. She's been a great addition to our family."

"I am still trying to come up with some sort of way to help David, but, he's the first class-five mutant I've ever encountered Moira," Professor Xavier said. "I just feel that I could be doing more for him."

"C'mon, Charles, ye can only do so much, luv. David knows that too, he understands. Besides, he knows ye love him, and he knows that ye will always be there. He is twenty-three years old he's only had his powers growing out of control since four or five years ago," Moira explained. "So therefore, ye need to stop feeling so much guilt, because David doesn't blame ye at all."

Xavier sat there, taking in the words of his ex-wife. However, even though Moira's words brought him a little bit of comfort, he still felt a sense of guilt over feeling as though he wasn't there enough for his son. But, he was a busy man due to running a company with the prodigal son of Howard Stark. And even though he didn't have a lot of time, he made that time for his son. David was worth it.

"Just, when you get home to Muir Island, be sure to tell him that I'll be there as soon as possible," said Xavier. "He may be legally an adult now, but, that does not mean that he isn't just an adolescent. He's my kid."

"Of course," Moira said.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Jean's Room**

Jean Grey found herself in her new bedroom in the X-Corporation Tower. The fact that this place in Manhattan was going to be her new home after years of living in a mental hospital, it felt unreal to her. For once, she wasn't going to be sleeping on a cot in a cramped, cold environment. However, she also knew that new clothes for her were in order, which were going to be given to her by Tony's assistant, Pepper Potts. Additionally, Jean was soon enough going to have to start tutoring with Professor Xavier in order to learn to control her telekinesis. She sat there on her bed, taking it all in. It felt overwhelming to her.

That was the moment Jean could hear someone at the door, and she saw Scott coming into the room, still blindfolded by his bandages keeping his powers at bay.

"Hi, Scott," said Jean as he made his way to sit on her bed.

"Hey, Jean." Scott smiled at her and Jean returned the gesture despite Scott not being able to see.

"What a day the two of us had?" asked Jean, closing her eyes.

"Yeah. If you told me yesterday that today, I will be going off to live in a building owned by Tony Stark and for once have a stable environment to live in, I would have told you you're crazy." Scott reached his hand over to Jean. Jean took Scott by the hand and gave it a squeeze, smiling slightly. She had never felt this comfortable around anyone before. For the longest time, Jean's interaction with others meant electric shock therapy and being drugged every few hours every time she heard a voice or if her telekinesis flared up. She valued being intimate with others and being close to other people. She had been isolated for years, so to be able to have a social outlet where she could be around others her age, it was something that she had never thought would happen.

"I know," Jean said. "But, besides, how's Xavier, Hank and Moira's progress going?"

"Well, Moira says based on the data she collected, that my blasts shouldn't be able to penetrate ruby quartz rock," Scott said. "They're planning to make that material into some glasses for me. Of course; Stark's paying for it to happen."

"He's a character," Jean said. "But, I did get a peek inside his head. He's dealing with his own demons as well. Though don't tell him I did that. I'm pretty sure he'd rather keep his thoughts private."

"As do I," Scott said.

"Yeah," Jean said in agreement. That was when Warren walked into the room.

"Hey guys," said the winged mutant. "How're you settling in?"

"We're doing fine," Jean said. "Xavier said I should start training with him soon."

"Yeah, and you guys are going to have to work on getting a GED since you missed so much of high school, and soon enough, you two will be put to work to ensure that you guys actually have a job. I already know when I graduate college this winter; I will be working finances for this business. I mean, I have no choice I have to make a living for myself because for one thing, I have a girlfriend who might end up being my fiancé since I have the ring already. Besides, it's not like my parents are going to allow me anywhere near my dad's company. They would not want a mutant disgracing the family business," Warren said, the bitterness evident in his voice.

"Well, I never put much thought into a career because I never thought I'd be given a chance like this," Jean said. "But, I would want to make my mother proud and get a PHD."

"Yeah, and my dad having been a military pilot before he died, he'd be happy to see me go for a career in the Air Force, or a career in engineering," Scott said. "And my mother, she was a scientist for the military. She was brilliant, could have probably been viewed as a genius in a sense. She'd want me to follow in Dad's footsteps. I mean, if me and my brother playing with model fighter planes in front of episodes of _G.I Joe_ on the TVat ages five and three had any indication at all, the two of us, we had soldier DNA in our blood from the moment we were born. In fact, Dad; he'd teach us the basics of CQC and he'd make us wrestle with each other, and mother would be like, "Christopher, they're not soldiers. Can you treat them like children?" But Alex and I, we didn't care. We loved it." Scott smiled at the memory.

"Well, if you plan to enter the military, good luck, because for the most part mutants are not allowed to serve in the military in the U.S. You can thank President Osborn for that because he says it's too expensive to provide mutants health care through the military, or something like that. I say it's bullshit; though I can't keep up with politics . . . it is hard enough needing to deal with anti-mutant sentiment. But, Scott, if you're interested in anything close enough to the military, one of our partners is this Canadian-American merger team of mutants called Alpha Flight which helps transport criminals to Rikers. Or, even better, you could work as an agent for SHIELD; nothing would please Director Nick Fury more especially since he's fond of mutants. SHIELD is essentially a secret CIA in a sense, but, Fury's got a couple agents that happen to be mutants," Warren said.

Scott and Jean took this in. The fact that they still had potential to have careers meant a lot to them.

"Yeah, yeah I can actually see that working," said Scott.

"Agreed," Jean said.

"Besides, Slim," said Warren in Scott's direction. "You should be able to see soon enough."

"Nothing would make me happier," said Scott.

"Believe me, I can see why, especially since you have spent so many years blind," Warren said. "But, you both are going to have to go through some training sessions with old friends of Xavier's. I mean, I call them training sessions from hell, but, believe me, it's necessary. You're additionally going to need extensive amounts of tutoring to catch up in terms of education. Though luckily, Hank, he's a great teacher and can teach you more high school math in the course of two months, guaranteed. This company, it's not a school by any means, but, it's the next best thing, because you're getting a start at having a career, at being able to have a steady payment once you get a college degree after graduating. This company, it almost guarantees that for you. However, Tony, Xavier, Pepper and Hank are actually looking to make online schooling an option here . . . it's in the works and it should be here as an option in the next three months or so or at least, that's what Tony says."

"Yeah, that's great," Jean said, an optimistic smile appearing on her face as she looked over at Scott. Scott smiled in return, as though he could sense Jean's happiness over the situation. Finally, after years of isolation, Scott and Jean were finally being given a second chance. Not everybody had an opportunity to have second chances like this, and they were forever grateful. Suddenly, that was the moment lights began to flicker throughout the tower, going on and off.

"What was that?" asked Scott.

"Probably something going on down in Forge's workshop. He's been hard at work at building a special training area for us mutants. He calls it the Danger Room and he's planning on putting it down in the basement since its vast enough down there for that," Warren explained.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Tony's Workshop**

Over in Tony's workshop area, Pepper was currently going over his itinerary for the next day. After having been successful with recruiting Scott Summers and Jean Grey, Tony felt very tempted to celebrate this win with scotch; however, Pepper wasn't having it.

"Okay, Tony, so tomorrow, you've got a conference in Nevada with Rhodey about providing the U.S Marine Corps with the newest missile that Stark Industries has been developing with Forge and Hank," Pepper said as she listed off everything that needed to get done. "So, therefore, you cannot afford to be late to this conference . . . again."

"Yeah, yeah, Pepper, I know, I know," Tony said as Xavier and Hank came into the room.

"Alright, well, Moira is going back to Muir Island to build Scott his glasses, as well as sleeping goggles and a visor with different settings on it – as you requested to her, Tony," Hank said. "She should be back in about two days or so."

"Good to know," said Tony.

"However, Tony, are you one hundred percent sure about these missiles that Forge and Stark Industries have been building? Because there's always the chance that these weapons could get into the wrong hands, especially since these are weapons you only have to fire once," said Xavier. He had been wary about these plans ever since Howard Stark had come up with the concept when Tony was fifteen. However, Howard had been the one to insist that the missiles get built and supplied to the Marines, so Tony was continuing to fulfill that.

"Yes, one hundred percent," Tony said. "That's how Dad did it, that's how America does it . . . it'll work . . . it will work."

"But aren't you aware that one of your competitors, Trask Industries, is planning on working with Stane Enterprises to build mutant-hunting robots called Sentinels?" asked Hank. "If you want to talk about a weapon that can very well potentially be in the wrong hands, I think that that is a good place to start. President Osborne is insisting that those things will be used to hold mutants accountable, but, we all know that he and Senator Robert Kelly and Senator Henry Gyrich are hoping to push for a Mutant Registration Act to force mutants to register underneath the government and expose themselves. This could very well be a danger to not only your companies, but, also us!"

"Yes, Beast. I know, I know," Tony said. "But, McCoy, I cannot just shut down the weapons manufacturing area of Stark Industries just because they can potentially be put in the wrong hands. I mean, what is there for us to worry about?"

Suddenly, that was the moment lights all around Tony's workshop started to flicker uncontrollably.

"Friday, what's going on?" Tony asked.

 _"I am picking up a strong electromagnetic interference in the area,"_ Friday said. _"I believe these actions to be hostile."_

"That can only mean one thing," Pepper whispered, dread evident in her voice.

That was the moment a man came floating in, an ominous cloak and helmet residing on him as he controlled the metal objects around the room.

"Erik," whispered Charles as he turned to face the man's direction.

"In the flesh, Charles," said Erik Lehnsherr as he made his way further into the room. The man known now as Magneto stood before them, a bitter, cold, hard expression on his face. His expression was hardened after years and years of cruelty from humanity and having to see the worst of it all. "I see you all have been busy."

"Indeed. It's been a while, old friend," said Xavier as Hank and Pepper guarded his side.

"Certainly, and I also see that you, Mr. Stark, have been working on trying to give mutants employment," said Magneto.

"I'm securing their futures, thank you very much," Tony said.

"Yes, but, Mr. Stark, you and your father have been blinded, always have been blinded to the fact that humans and mutants can never live together in peace . . ." said Erik.

"You may see it that way. I know you've suffered," Pepper said.

"Ah, this must be the lovely Pepper Potts," said Erik. "I see you are buying into this too."

"Well, last I checked I am Stark's employee," replied Pepper.

"Well then, Mr. Stark you might want to take Xavier's advice in canceling the manufacturing of your missiles," Magneto said in an ominous tone.

"No, not gonna happen old man," Tony declared. "Your threats are empty at best, Mags. Remember? My old man; the most generous thing that he did was fund your and Xavier's trips to third world countries! So therefor, your threats are empty. They mean _nothing_ to me."

"Are they now? Because ever since last time we've encountered each other, I've actually formed up my own little club, the Brotherhood of Mutants, and, better yet, it includes my own two children, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff," said Magneto.

"Erik, I know you feel responsible for Magda's death, but, attacking humanity will not fix that," said Charles.

"How do you know, Charles? You know, not all of us can be you, working with a billionaire and having a good relationship with your ex-wife and your son from that previous marriage," said Erik in a bitter, angered tone. "Have you ever stopped to take a look at the world outside here? These humans, these Homo sapiens, they cannot even make peace with each other! I know for a fact you have teens here now. If you are going to teach them anything at all, Xavier, teach them fight; otherwise they might as well hide in X-Corporation Tower for the rest of their lives . . . _pathetic!_ " That was the moment Magneto proceeded to back out of the room and leave, leaving Pepper, Tony, Xavier and Hank there in unease.

"Should we be worried? I mean, the man's almost as eccentric as me," said Tony.

"That's what makes me worried, Tony," Xavier said. "Right now, with Magneto, we should keep a close eye watch, especially if he's implying what he implied to us about the missiles that are being revealed tomorrow in Nevada."

"Agreed," Hank whispered, deeply startled.

* * *

 **Up next: Enter Magneto**

 **Remember, please be sure to REVIEW! Post it to the website or PM me on here to give me your thoughts! Also, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.**


	4. Issue 4: Enter Magneto

_Professor Charles Xavier has successfully recruited his adoptive daughter and son, Scott Summers and Jean Grey, into X-Corporation, a company owned by him and Tony Stark and designed to help employ mutants and secure their futures by giving them job opportunities, as well as privatizing world peace._

 _As Tony prepares to launch his Jericho missiles in Nevada, he and Xavier get a visit from Xavier's old friend, Erik Lehnsherr, who goes by the name of Magneto and has formed the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, a group of mutants who stand for anarchy and fighting humanity._

* * *

 **Issue 4: Enter Magneto**

 **Oxford University – Twenty Years Ago**

Thirty-three-year-old Charles Xavier found himself rolling out of his Oxford dormitory, his textbooks residing on his lap as he made his way to class. Being in his senior year in Oxford's medical program and about to graduate in the winter, he was one step closer to getting his PHD. He had hopes of being able to use his gifts in some capacity to help benefit the world. After having served in his early twenties in the U.S Army where he had met his ex-wife, Moira, it was disheartening when he'd gotten diagnosed with spinal cancer and got confined to a wheelchair. However, around the time he'd been married to Moira and they'd had their now-three-year-old son David together, Xavier had gotten blackmailed by Moira's now-husband, Joseph MacTaggart, into divorcing Moira who threatened to expose Xavier as a mutant to the world due to the fact that Joseph was a very influential politician in Scotland. However, Xavier and Moira still co-parented David together. It was important considering that David's mutant powers had manifested at birth, and as a result, Moira was looking to fund a research facility to help mutants with controlling their powers. That made Xavier receiving his PHD all the more important so that he could help David control his mutation.

As Charles exited his dorm room, following him was his college roommate and best friend, Erik Magnus Lehnsherr, a mutant like himself, who could control magnetism.

"Another day ahead of us, Charles," said Erik.

"Indeed, Erik," Charles said. "A few more months left, and graduation will be here. After that, Moira and I will be able to fund for that research facility."

"Ah, for your son David," Erik told him, nodding along. He knew of David's powers which had manifested when the boy was an infant.

"And any other mutants who struggle with their mutation," stated Charles. "Ultimately, we are one step closer to achieving what it is we've talked about from day one: peace, mutants and humans, learning and living together . . . it can all be achieved, Magnus."

"Absolutely, old friend." Erik shared a smile with his friend. He had every bit of confidence in his long-time friend. Having met in their freshman year when becoming roommates at Oxford, the two had been surprised to learn that the other was a mutant. But, that did mean that the two had at least one thing in common, and they both had the same vision for humans and mutants to one day live together peacefully. Erik having suffered as a victim of the Holocaust had lost everything; as far as he knew Charles Xavier was the closest thing to family that he had in his life. "It's the dawn of a new age for evolution, and one day, mutants will no longer have to hide. We can be open, free . . ." He smiled at the thought of achieving such a goal.

As the two men walked down the vast halls of Oxford to their first class of the day, Charles and Erik found themselves stopped in their tracks by someone.

"Hello, you're Charles Xavier, correct?" asked the man.

"Indeed I am. How may I help you?" asked Charles.

"I actually have an interest in you both. You might not know me, but, my name is Howard Stark, owner of –"

"Stark Industries," Erik said with a smile. "Yes . . . I know of your past exploits, Mr. Stark . . . very much."

"Absolutely . . . I know for a fact that the two of you are looking for travel to third-world countries to help traumatized war victims after you graduate Oxford," Howard said. "I would like to generously fund your trips, especially since Charles, you served in the U.S Army before attending school here. I feel that the three of us could make a difference in the world . . ."

* * *

 **Hawthorne Army Depot Base – Present Day**

Today was a day of importance for Tony Stark, Charles Xavier and James "Rhodey" Rhodes, this day being that they were going to be doing a presentation of the new "Jericho" missiles. The Jericho missiles had been a long-time project that Howard Stark had been developing some time before his death. After Tony's father died, it had been up to Xavier and Tony to pick up on the development of the missiles, and now that the project was complete, he had to present it to members of the U.S Marines. Stepping off the private plane that had been piloted by Hank, Tony and Rhodey proceeded to greet General Christopher Lee, Xavier at their side.

"Mr. Stark, I am looking forward to your weapons presentation," General Lee said with a nod of his head.

"Absolutely," Tony said. He shook hands with all members of the U.S Marines before he proceeded to take the stage. Clearing his throat, he proceeded to speak to all members of the U.S Marines in Nevada, as well as the press that was there broadcasting the news to all around the United States.

"Is it better to be feared, or respected?" Tony asked everyone there. "And I say, is it too much to ask for both? With that in mind, I humbly present the crown jewel of Stark Industries Freedom Line. It is the first missile system to incorporate our proprietary repulsor technology. They say that the best weapon is the one that you never have to fire at all. I for one _respectfully_ disagree. I prefer the weapon that you only have to fire _once!_ That's how Dad did it, that's how America does it, and it's worked out pretty well so far! Find an excuse to let one of these things off the chain and I personally guarantee you the bad guys, won't even want to come out of their caves . . . peace in our time, everyone." Tony proceeded to gesture for the weapons to get launched, and the missiles proceeded to get prepared to launch. However, that was the moment something unexpected happened. The missiles seemed to be turning into the direction of the members of the Marines that were there for the presentation.

"Tony, Tony, what's going on?" asked Rhodey, coming up to him.

"I-I don't know, this wasn't part of the plan," Tony said.

"Well, somebody shut it down!" Hank said, looking to the person who had had their hands on the controls for the missiles.

"I can't!" the man said.

"Shit!" Tony hissed. He walked over to the professor. "Everybody, get out of here, now!" he yelled out as the missiles prepared to launch. That was the moment the Marines proceeded to fall back and get inside the base just in time before the missiles fired.

"ERIK!" Charles shouted at the top of his lungs, looking as though he was going to lose his mind. When Magneto had come knocking down their door the other day, he hadn't been kidding at all. In fact, he'd been serious. As the missiles flew towards a desert alley not far away and went off, causing a large explosion, the master of magnetism himself made his presence known, wearing his classic deep, purple cape and red armor made all out of metal, as well as his helmet which blocked Professor Xavier's telepathy.

"Really, Magneto?! This is low, even for you!" Hank seethed, looking surprisingly angry.

"Hank, do not let him do this," whispered Rhodey, trying to calm the blue beast down. "You're better than this."

"Erik, why this?" Charles asked. "Why?"

"Because, Charles, if you think for even a second that you can achieve peace with a weapon that you only have to use once, and only once, then you truly are a special kind of idiot, especially you, Mr. Stark. This comes to show you that your project is no different than those Sentinels that are in development to hunt down our kind!" Erik said in a cold tone.

"That is not true, Magneto," Tony retorted. "Just because I develop a weapon that can be an asset to the U.S military it does not mean everyone's out to get you! Get a life! You're paranoid!"

"And when have you ever tried to do anything that isn't just for yourself? Where were you when hundreds of mutants started suffering from discrimination, Mr. Stark?" Magneto spat.

"Now, you're talking crazy!" Tony bit back harshly.

"We shall meet again, and I won't be alone," Magneto said, before drifting off to God only knew where.

"Well, let's hope that that moment won't be any time soon," Tony whispered bitterly.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Rec Room**

In the recreation room of X-Corporation Tower, Warren Worthington III found himself sitting on the couch while he watched the news on one of the many, high-tech flat screens Tony had throughout the tower. Warren had wanted to watch the coverage of Tony launching his newest weapon with Scott, Jean and his girlfriend, Candy Southern.

Candy curled into Warren's side, a glass of red wine in her hand while Warren nursed a bottle of Angry Orchard hard cider in his hand. The young couple stayed close to each other while Scott and Jean sat on the opposite end of the sofa, curled up underneath a blanket that they were sharing. Scott still had his bandages over his eyes, but, according to Moira, his ruby-quartz glasses were to be ready by the next day.

As they watched the news coverage of the missile launch, Warren shared a meaningful look with his girlfriend of three years. She had been the most amazing, stable thing in his life, especially after Warren had gotten cut off from his family. Candy had accepted him and let him into her heart from the moment that Warren asked her out on a date. She had been a lifelong, childhood friend of his . . . they used to play house when they were six years old. For Warren, falling in love with one of his best friends had been both exciting and scary at the same time. But, Warren now knew that Candy was the one. Lord knew how badly he wanted to marry this raven-haired, sapphire-eyed beauty. Just as Warren and Candy were about to lean into a kiss, a disturbing image on the news caught their attention almost immediately, but, were Warren and Candy surprised? No; they weren't.

As Warren watched the news, he could just tell that the problems with the missiles had been Magneto's doing. Only Magneto would have that short of senses to screw over Tony and Professor Xavier like that. Warren shook his head, and he noticed Jean had been watching too. She looked disturbed.

"Is it normal for stuff like that to happen?" Jean asked.

"It's more normal than I'd like to say," said Candy. "This isn't the first time an incident like this happened."

"Who could do something like that?" asked Jean.

"An old friend of Xavier's . . . they were roommates at Oxford when Howard Stark, Tony's father, approached them about funding their trips to third-world countries to help traumatized war victims. Heck, they even helped people after 9/11 happened and actually went to the hospitals where the people that were caught in the Twin Towers were residing. Xavier used his telepathic powers to counsel them. Magneto, like his name implies, can control magnetism. However, one day, while Xavier and Magneto were in Sokovia, Romania, Magneto's wife at the time who'd been traveling with him and their children Wanda and Pietro, she got caught in the crossfire.

"The people that lived there found out about Xavier and Magneto being mutants, and they killed Magneto's wife Magda who also happened to be Jewish. As a result, Magneto had ended up leaving his children with this couple who adopted Wanda and Pietro as their own, but, these people, they were mystics, and ended up somehow enhancing Pietro and Wanda's powers to the point where their mutations came a lot earlier than expected. Ever since then, Magneto has been filled with bitterness and hatred for humanity, and he formed up a group of followers called the Brotherhood of Mutants. His children Wanda and Pietro are the some of the youngest members; I'd say they're close in age to me. Wanda's powers include chaos magic, telekinesis, reality warping and teleportation. Pietro's include increased metabolism and moving faster than the speed of light," Warren explained. "And now, with President Osborn attempting to push for a mutant registration, Magneto, he's determined to prove that he's right, that mutants and humans cannot live together peacefully. I for one, respectfully, disagree. I mean, my girlfriend is human, for God's sake!" He kissed Candy's face to emphasize his point.

"Good point," Scott said with a nod as Pepper and Happy made their way into the room.

"Hey, did you all see?" asked Pepper.

"Yeah, we saw. Magneto, he's not going to stop at anything," said Candy with a heavy sigh. "This is insanity."

"But at the same time, we are dealing with people wanting to build Sentinels. I know for a fact that Trask Industries is behind that; I bet you a hundred dollars that Bolivar Trask is the brains behind it all," Warren stated in a cynical tone.

"Well, if they cause any worse problems, you know who we should call," Pepper said.

"Yeah, Alpha Flight: the Wolverine, Carol Danvers, John and James Proudstar . . . best of the best," said Warren. "They'll be more than happy to whip his ass into shape and set him up in a plastic prison cell on Rikers. We just have to wait until they end up doing something worse. I mean, I know for a fact that Senator Kelly is on the campaign trail with Henry Gyrich as the main choice for his vice president. I mean, the guy's high in the polls especially with how he is winning at these debates. I can say, Kelly has the charisma, but, what makes me nervous is him wanting to push further for mutant registration. It's the last thing that I need to worry about, not when I've got my old man trying to create a cure for mutation. The fact that he had wanted to use me as his guinea pig to test it out, that for me was the last straw," Warren added.

"I know, and that kills me, because I've known you and your parents since we were little kids, War," Candy piped in.

"But you know what hurts even more; my best friend since my early prep school days, since middle school, Cameron Hodge? I find out that he is an anti-mutant bigot and that he sides with my parents. My parents must've told him about my mutation, and now, he's against me! I've known that guy since I was twelve and in the sixth grade! All those years that I've spent protecting him from bullies in the gym locker room, taking him under my wing, letting him hang out with me and Candy . . . I was nothing but a good friend and a nice person, and now, he's throwing my kindness right back in my face!" Warren said, his voice brimming with hurt and anger.

"Warren, I can just say this: even though I am separated from my brothers and sisters and my parents are dead, I'm glad that my life isn't as fucked up as yours," said Jean.

"Me too," said Scott in agreement. "I can barely imagine my parents cutting me off."

Warren nodded at Scott and Jean. "Well, I don't envy your guys' situation at all. Anyone who says that they envy you guys is crazy."

"Let's just hope that Tony didn't get himself into too much trouble with Magneto," said Happy. "I mean I am his driver and his bodyguard. If anything, it's me and Pepper who are responsible to keep the guy out of trouble."

"Well, I hope that we never have to run into this Magneto guy," said Scott.

"You should never say the word never, Slim, because I remember the last time I had ended up getting involved. He'd sent one of his guys, Fred Dukes who had been a strongman of sorts in some sideshow out in Texas due to the fact that he is massive in size, to come to my college and start trouble. I ended up getting involved and exposing myself as a mutant, and let's say I'll never forget what Dukes had done to my wings," said Warren. "Now that you two are recruited, that means Magneto would want to try and come after the two of you. You're a target now."

"Well you can tell this guy to kiss my ass, because from what I am seeing on the news right now, I'm not joining his side," Jean said with a shake of her head.

"That's the spirit, Jean," said Scott, nodding in agreement with her.

* * *

 **Up next: Iceman Cometh**

 **Remember: be sure to follow, favorite and most importantly of all, REVIEW! I . . . NEED . . . REVIEWS . . . PLEASE!**

 **Also, I am thinking about putting this story on a more consistent uploading schedule since I want to build more of an audience with it. I am thinking every two weeks, like a comic since all my chapters for volume 1 are completed already, and it will be every Sunday. Again, be sure to leave reviews on this story, because I highly value your opinions on it. I'm disappointed with the fact that reviews are lacking so much on this story, considering I am looking to make this into a series, and I cannot do that with a lack of support on this. Next chapter, Bobby "Iceman" Drake is making his debuts, so if you wanna see Bobby's official introduction, be sure to review, please. Excelsior!**

 **Also, since Christmas eve is tomorrow, I wish you all a very merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.**


	5. Issue 5: Iceman Cometh

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier is challenged by owning X-Corporation with his business partner, Tony Stark, the son of Howard and Maria Stark. Having recently adopted his adoptive children, Scott Summers and Jean Grey, Professor Xavier and Tony Stark planned to launch the Jericho missiles, the pride and joy of Stark Industries._

 _Unfortunately, during the launch of the Jericho missiles, Charles Xavier's old friend, Erik "Magneto" Lehnsherr sabotaged the launch using his powers of magnetism. As this continues, Xavier's ex-wife, Moira MacTaggart, continues to work on a special pair of ruby-quartz sunglasses for Scott in hopes that they will help him see again and have his vision back after years of being blind._

* * *

 **Issue 5: Iceman Cometh**

 **Tony's Private Plane**

To say that Tony Stark was not in the best of moods the next morning would be an understatement. Once again, another one of his events that was important for his company had been sabotaged by Magneto, who was still trying to make a point to Tony and Xavier. What it was exactly, Tony wasn't sure. But, he did know for a fact that Magneto had wanted to make it all about him, as usual.

When Tony got up to get ready for his day, his thoughts drifted over to X-Corporation Tower and how Scott and Jean were holding up. He knew that today, Scott was going to be getting his ruby quartz glasses so that he would finally be able to see, and Tony had to be there that day. He additionally needed to oversee things at Stark Tower, especially with the building and manufacturing of machine guns and rifles that were to be shipped to the U.S Navy. Tony let out a sigh as he met with Pepper to get ready to board their private plane to X-Corp Tower. He was just hoping that not one more thing was going to go wrong. After the incident with Magneto, that was enough to put him in a sour mood.

Boarding the plane with Pepper, Tony found himself drinking a glass of whiskey at nine A.M. That was how ticked off he was at Magneto that he felt he needed a drink first thing in the morning. Turning on FOX News, Tony was more than a little angered that he was being covered in FOX and Friends.

" _In other news, Tony Stark, the prodigal son of Howard and Maria Stark, was a target of an attack yesterday afternoon at Hawthorne Army Depot Base in Nevada when he was presenting Stark Industries' newest weapon, the Jericho missiles. There was a magnetic interference causing the missiles to turn and attack members of the U.S Marines including Colonel James Rhodes. There are several members of the Marines who say that the attack was caused by Erik Lehnsherr, a mutant with magnetism powers who had been accused of several terroristic attacks on government buildings for the past five years. This attack against Stark Industries and Tony Stark is making people wonder whether or not a mutant registration act should be in order. Senator Edward Kelly had this to say,"_ said Ainsley Earhardt.

" _This attack against Tony Stark yesterday has left numerous Americans badly shaken, as it should, as well as multiple members of the U.S Marines who were at the weapons presentation. Most know that Mr. Stark is known for having mutants on his payroll. Who is to say that one day, those mutants will not turn on him like Magneto? If Magneto is controlling our missiles to try and prove whatever point he is trying to prove, who is to say that other mutants won't follow by his example? Who is to say that a mutant attack won't happen tomorrow? That is why my first act as president of the United States of America will be to issue a mutant registration act to keep mutants in line. Are they monsters? Are they aliens? What are mutants?"_ Senator Kelly was asking the press.

"Shut up, Senator Kelly," Tony spat out, turning the news off. He was pissed off enough as it was, and now, Senator Kelly was rubbing salt into the wound. It was embarrassing.

"Yeah, Tony, I'm hearing you," Pepper said sympathetically.

"And on top of that, I'm dealing with Trask Industries and Stane Enterprises trying to build Sentinel robots. Last I heard Senator Kelly wants to use them when he is in office as president. I mean, for God's sake, if something could not damage my companies more, and the reputation we already have . . ." Tony's voice trailed off as he took a sip of his drink, shaking his head in frustration and anger.

"Tony, enough with the booze today," said Pepper sternly. "Come on, you know that Xavier will be disappointed to know that you got wasted this early in the morning, especially the day that Scott is about to get his ruby quartz glasses to help him see. Okay? Leave the drink alone."

"Pepper," Tony started to say.

"No, don't "Pepper" me! You just got started on a sobriety program weeks ago, and despite that, you still are not getting clean . . ." Pepper said with a shake of her head. "What works with you, Tony?"

Tony let out a sigh as he reluctantly put his drink down. The plane was flying at such high speeds that they got to X-Corporation Tower within an hour. Tony got out of the plane and headed down to the basement, where Xavier had said he'd be with Scott, Moira, Jean, Hank, Candy, Happy, and Warren. Tony wanted to be there to see Scott see again for the first time in nearly ten years. When Tony and Pepper arrived in the basement, they saw everyone there, Forge included.

"Hey everybody," Tony said. "Are we ready to test the glasses out?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact," said Hank with a grin.

Moira held in her hands Scott's ruby quartz sun glasses that would be able to help him contain his optic blast beams. She turned to Jean.

"Jean, would ye like to do the honors, lass?" Moira asked.

Jean smiled. "Yes, I'd love to," she said. She took the glasses from Moira and stood in front of Scott. They all figured that since Jean and Scott were already showing signs of having a special connection and a friendship that was starting to blossom; Jean would be the one that he wanted to see first. Jean gently placed the sunglasses onto Scott's nose, covering his eyes to replace the bandages with the quartz eye-wear.

"It's okay, Scott . . . you can open your eyes now, son," Xavier whispered.

Scott ever so slowly opened his eyes, taking in the world around him. His vision was tinted red, but, he didn't care. He could see. As he took in his surroundings, the first thing that he saw was Jean standing there, smiling a beautiful smile . . . her round face, her long, beautiful hair, her almond-shaped eyes . . . she was so striking. She looked like an angel sent straight from heaven despite the fact that she hadn't gained that much weight yet, but, still . . . she looked like something only from his wildest dreams.

"Do they work?" asked Warren. He and Candy were standing there, grinning like cats that swallowed a flock of canaries.

"Holy _shit . . ._ it . . . it _works!_ " Scott breathed out. He leaned forward and he and Jean wrapped their arms around each other in a tight embrace. Jean laughed lightly. Scott turned to Moira. "Thank you, Dr. MacTaggart . . . you're a genius!"

Moira smiled in return. "It's my pleasure, lad."

"At least we know he can see now," said Forge with a smile on his face. Tony and Pepper went into Scott's line of vision. Tony couldn't help but grin. This was the very thing that put him in a good mood that morning.

"This was exactly what I needed to put me in a good mood after yesterday," said Tony.

"But, why the heck did that happen, Tony?" asked Jean as she broke off of Scott.

"Well, I'm pretty sure good old Warren filled you and Slim in, Red. It was Magneto; two days ago, the day we picked you and Scott up, Magneto came here banging our door down, threatening that he was going to start something. And he did. He came to my weapons presentation in Nevada, and he sabotaged it for me and Stark Industries. He made it all about him," Tony said bitterly.

"That means now that he's starting to come after you, he's going to try and go after all of us. You know what? He can try to all he wants, but he will never win. Why? Because I know I am a person of integrity I am a good person, and I can take whatever mud you try and throw in my face," Candy stated strongly.

Warren kissed Candy on the cheek proudly when she said that.

"So, now that Scott can see, what's the first order of business?" Jean inquired.

"First, we get you two through physical therapy and training sessions . . . Happy, my bodyguard, will be more than glad to do that," said Tony.

"Have either one of you boxed before?" Happy asked Scott and Jean.

Scott and Jean shook their heads.

"Well, that's the first place to begin," Warren said. He went over and leaned a hand on Scott's shoulder with a grin on his face. This was Scott's first time seeing Warren's mutation: his wings. Scott grinned.

"Yeah, Scott, you're not the only one here who struggled with controlling your powers," said Hank.

"Sorry to break it to you, Slim, but you're not the biggest freak here," Warren said, smiling.

"Well, that's a first for us," Jean said, grinning in relief.

* * *

 **Janssen High School – Boston, Massachusetts**

The packed hallways of Janssen High School in Boston, Massachusetts was a high school that prided itself on having some of the best education the city could offer for students who could not afford to go to private school. For fourteen-year-old Bobby Drake, he knew he was lucky to attend high school there, but, in a lot of ways, he didn't feel so lucky.

Bobby kept his head low as he made his way towards his next period class. When he was twelve, Bobby always got the sense that he was different from other boys in his grade. He always felt as though he put a distance between himself and his classmates. While he did have friends, that did not mean he felt as though he necessarily fit in with his friends. Growing up in an old-fashioned, working-class home with a Jewish father and an Irish-Catholic mother, Bobby always knew that there was something about him that stuck out. He just couldn't quite figure it out yet.

Bobby made his way to the locker rooms for gym, which was his own personal hell. Yes, he was into sports like most guys in his class were, but, it was the people that were in his gym class that made him feel deeply uncomfortable. He struggled with being part of conversations where the guys would talk about their crushes on these female celebrities that they found to be hot. Halle Berry, Sophie Turner, Jennifer Lawrence and even Scarlet Johansson were common actresses that many boys his age had crushes on. As he walked into the locker room, he could overhear a conversation being made rating actresses on a "Hot or Not" list.

"No, Duncan, are you smoking something dude? C'mon on, Halle Berry isn't _that_ great," said one of his classmates, Matthew.

"Matthew, I'm just telling you: sure Halle Berry may have sucked as Cat Woman . . . I think most of us here can agree. But, at least her looks save her from that," said another classmate, Duncan.

"Dunk, I'm just going to say that I feel Elizabeth Olson is a lot better looking, and guess what?! She's the younger sister of the Olson twins, man!" someone else said.

"Guys, guys, guys, let's be honest none of these women that you're mentioning would even pay attention to you for a second. Would they go to homecoming this weekend, no? Let's look at some girls that we actually have a chance with. And no, I'm not talking about that Sophie Turner chick from _Game of Thrones_ who is engaged to that Jonas Brother . . . how about actual girls in our class? Because that's reality, you idiots," another classmate, Eugene, said. He turned to Bobby. "What about you, Bobby? Who do you have your eye on at the moment?"

Bobby swallowed. This was where he often got uncomfortable, because he didn't _see_ any girls in the high school that he found attractive. He wasn't even sure if he found females attractive. However, he also knew that he needed to put his façade up; he needed to make it look like it didn't bother him. He knew that if that were the case, and if he didn't find himself a girlfriend soon, the guys in his freshman class would think something was up. If you so much as didn't have a crush on a girl in your grade, in Bobby's class that meant you automatically got pegged as gay. He saw what happened to kids that came out in the open as gay; they had that held over their head for years and hazing was involved, no doubt. The last thing Bobby wanted was to have to deal with something like that. Additionally, he was starting to feel increasingly cold lately. He was hoping and praying that he wasn't sick, God forbid, or something worse. In his biology class they were just starting to discuss mutation and the X-gene, and kids in his class already were not too kind to the idea of it. Words like "mutie" got tossed around the school as though it were candy. Plus, Bobby's mother and father were not too keen on the idea of mutants. It was no lie that they were huge supporters of Senator Kelly's plans for mutant registration. If Bobby were a mutant, he'd be lynched and burned on a stake for the whole city of Boston to see.

Continuing to swallow, he knew he had to be in the conversation. If he didn't, Eugene and everyone else would catch on and he'd have gay slurs tossed at him all week long. Heck, he'd probably even have the ballot box rigged to peg him as "homecoming queen" for the whole school to see; it had happened before to several gay students at Janssen High School. That was the last thing Bobby needed, not when he was just starting his freshman year of high school.

"Uh, no, Eugene, I don't have my eyes on anybody at the moment," Bobby said. That was partially the truth.

"Oh c'mon, Drake, there are probably so many girls that wanna go out with you," said Duncan with a shake of his head.

"Yeah, I know, I know, but it's not that those girls aren't pretty," Bobby said.

"C'mon, Bobby . . . what is it with you?" Matthew asked him.

"Nothing at all, guys," Bobby said, allowing his natural grin to come upon his face. "Besides, it's nothing that should concern you all."

"I think some of it should concern us," said Duncan. "Because you know whenever a guy in this class says they're not attracted to chicks, they turn out to be . . ."

"Oh my God, Duncan, I am so over this!" Bobby said. It was so ridiculous, he actually found himself starting to laugh.

"Okay, alright . . . no need to get defensive. We're all guys here, man," Eugene said, going to his locker.

Bobby let out a sigh of exasperation. The last thing that he wanted was the guys in his class asking him questions regarding his sexuality. He wasn't even sure if he _was_ gay. But, he sure as hell felt discomforted talking about stuff like this with people that he wasn't even friends with.

"But, anyway, guys, what did you think of that discussion in bio about mutation?" asked Duncan.

"I swear if one of our classmates turns out to be a mutie, I'm gonna hang myself before I have to see one," said Matthew.

Bobby swallowed, feeling an increasing chill over his body. Lately, he had been feeling increasingly cold. It was something that worried him considerably. He didn't know if it was just nervousness, but, he knew for a fact that he was hoping he wasn't a mutant. He sure as hell was not going to show his nervousness.

Bobby just chose to brush it off by rolling his eyes, as he usually did in situations he didn't take too seriously. He just chuckled at the ridiculousness that this whole thing was.

"What's so funny, Drake?" asked Eugene.

"This whole thing is stupid, guys. For the love of God, wow! Just . . . wow! I am amazed, you all should get your own TV show you deserve a gold star," Bobby said, shaking his head as he laughed. "But, I wouldn't waste too much time forming words, guys, you're gonna need it later."

"Why is it making you discomforted it's not like that's you?" asked Matthew, rolling his eyes.

Bobby swallowed, considering this. This was something that he never thought too much about until now. Typically, in situations like this, he was able to laugh it off and make a joke out of it. It had been a coping mechanism of his that he had developed. He'd used making wisecracks against bullies back in middle school, because he knew that at least he could make those people laugh, not necessarily at him, but with him. Bobby pulled his gym clothes on, wanting to brush this whole thing off, because he was already sick of talking about it, especially with people that he didn't even associate with on a regular basis.

"Bobby, seriously, we're all guys here," pressed Duncan.

"Guys, quit pushing it," Bobby said, rolling his eyes. "Otherwise, I'm gonna think one of _you_ guys is gay since you seem to care so much about it. If I _were_ gay, I'd make sure you knew it. I would be here in the locker room drooling over half-naked photos of James Marsden on the cover of _Men's Health._ When that happens, trust me, I'll know who to call!" He allowed himself to chuckle at that, because that was very much so the truth about him. If he were gay, if he were, he'd make it known to everyone and he'd make sure of it, too.

Matthew and Eugene laughed at Bobby's joke.

"Why James Marsden though?" asked Matthew.

"Are you serious? The man has a sick body for being in his forties. I hate him for it," Bobby said, chuckling. "And he's going to be in the movie _Sonic,_ based on the video game that was my whole childhood!"

"Very good point there," said Eugene. "Also, Ryan Reynolds, even though his portrayal of the Green Lantern was complete shit," he added.

"It wasn't him; it was the script and the director that made that film horrible, dude. That's a movie that is honestly my bottom and it made me, as a GL fan, cry in all the wrong places. I will watch that movie and I will cringe and cry all night long," Bobby said, continuing to laugh.

"Look, Bobby, all we're saying is that as long as you don't become a mutie or a faggot, we're not going to have any problems," Duncan said.

"You don't turn into that overnight," Bobby said rolling his eyes again; however, that was when the chills in his body seemed to be getting worse. His hands suddenly felt freezing as he tried brushing it aside. When he released a breath, he could see it coming out in a cloud, and when he looked down, he could see his fingertips starting to turn an icy shade of blue. "Besides, guys, of all the things I could be doing with my time . . . streaming stuff off YouTube like those cat videos I have a weakness for, watching episodes of _The Big Bang Theory_ . . . those are the things I could be doing instead of debating this shit with you guys."

"Bobby, seriously, we're just kidding, man," said Eugene.

Bobby shivered slightly against the intense cold he was starting to feel. "Guys, is it just me, or is it cold in here?" he asked.

"It's probably just you," Matthew insisted.

Bobby kept on rubbing his hands together, as if he were trying to warm them up.

"You okay, Bobby?" Duncan asked.

"Cool as a cucumber, Duncan, cool as a cucumber," Bobby said, grinning against the cold he was feeling. He was determined to laugh it off like he'd done so many times in the past. Joking around had always been a good coping mechanism; he wanted to make people around him laugh and get a chuckle out of everyone.

"Where did you get that line from, Drake? An episode of _The Flash?"_ asked Eugene.

"Hey, okay, I watch the CW because I _like_ it, and it's pretty much the only channel on cable that has anything good anymore, unless if you count that show _American Horror Story_ on FX, or even _The Simpsons_ ," Bobby said as he continued to feel colder and colder. The combining stress, between the guys asking him questions about hot girls and gays and mutants, Bobby could hardly take it, even though he was trying to hide it behind a smile on his face. His mother had said he'd been born with a smile on his face, and it was true. You never knew what was going to come out of his mouth. But, he couldn't take any more of this idiocy from his classmates. When Bobby found himself taking things more seriously than his classmates, people practically thought the world would end. That was because Bobby showed up late to almost every class except math, got mediocre grades, and nearly a month ago had taken his pants off in Spanish class and actually said a few curse words in Spanish which amused his classmates, but, not his teachers. It was no lie that Bobby had been awarded with "class clown" for his eighth grade superlatives in the year book. In fact, for the eighth grade prank just the previous year, it had been Bobby's idea to fill the swimming pool with Jell-O chocolate pudding.

"Don't _The Simpsons_ predict everything? I mean, they predicted that mutants will be popping up all over the goddamn earth! They predicted 9/11!" Matthew said.

"Yeah, they do . . . half the time those predictions in that cartoon turn out to be true!" Bobby said as his hands grew a lot colder. He let out a sigh as he tried to relax his tense body. "Besides, guys, I have to ask this question. This has been boggling my mind since I got in here. You know how right now, the colors of our lockers are blue? How do you know that what I am looking at right now isn't red?"

"Because they teach us in grade school, red is red and blue is blue," Duncan said.

"Yeah, but how do I know my blue isn't your green?" Bobby asked. "I mean, it's like this: I walked into a store, I saw something called balls and I bought it."

The guys let out a round of laughter.

"Then that would worry me, man. You don't just buy something called balls in the store," laughed Eugene.

Bobby was relieved that for once, the focus wasn't on gays or mutants, but, it was on him cracking everyone in the room up. However, that was when it happened. His already cold hands grew colder, along with the rest of his body, and that was when a burst of ice shot out of his hands, covering his gym locker as well as the rest of his body, his whole body being turned into a snowy, ice form that made him look like Jack Frost.

"H-Holy shit . . . Bobby, what did you _do?!_ " Duncan asked.

"Nothing," Bobby insisted nervously, but, he knew that right now, this was something especially as he started to cover the whole entire boys' locker room in ice that shot from his hands. He let out a yell of surprise as the moisture in the air seemed to make his ability go haywire. The boys in the locker room backed out of the room, yelling for the gym coach that Bobby was a "mutie". The blast of ice didn't seem to want to stop, until finally, Bobby collapsed against the ice-covered locker, shaking violently as the ice melted from his body. He knew that if he stuck around, he was going to be done for. The guys in his class hated mutants to begin with, and now, this was the proof of his worst fear that he _was_ a mutant, no doubt at all.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Cerebro Chamber**

Professor Xavier found himself at the Cerebro computer down in the basement, trying to upgrade the computer further with Forge. However, as he was wearing the helmet, he felt a surge come over him as he detected a mutant teen in Boston, Massachusetts. He proceeded to use Cerebro to gather whatever data that he could, and a file came up. Cerebro read the file out loud:

" _Robert Louis "Bobby" Drake, fourteen . . . powers: cryokinesis and an organic ice form,"_ Cerebro said as the computer collected the data on Bobby. Xavier found himself smiling just slightly . . . one more potential.

* * *

 **Up next: The Original Five**


	6. Issue 6: The Original Five

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier and his business partner Tony Stark own X-Corporation, a company designed to help secure the futures of mutants by giving them job opportunities. Having several employees which include his legal wards, Scott Summers, Jean Grey, as well as Warren Worthington III, Forge and Hank McCoy, Professor Xavier enlists the help of his contacts to help Scott and Jean get into shape physically as he trains them mentally._

 _As this happens, Professor Xavier picks up the psychic signatures of a fourteen-year-old boy from Boston named Bobby Drake, whose mutation of cyrokinesis has just began to manifest._

* * *

 **Issue 6: The Original Five**

 **Alberta, Canada Alpha Flight Facility – Eight Years Ago**

Forty-five-year-old Charles Xavier found himself touring the facility of Canadian-American mutant team Alpha Flight. The team had been founded by former Air Force test pilot Carol Danvers who had gotten caught in an accident which gave her alien-based powers, and dishonorably discharged mutants John and James Proudstar. Ever since then, Alpha Flight had become a reliable partnership for Professor Xavier and Tony Stark, especially as they were looking to gain the government's trust to prove that not all mutants were using their powers for bad intentions. And Alpha Flight never failed to prove people wrong. The amount of time and effort that they put in to working with both the Canadian and American governments had led to many successes, including the arrests of several mutant gangs that had been smuggling drugs from the Canadian border over to America.

"I have to say, John, Carol, that this is quite impressive," said Professor Xavier.

"Thank you, Professor," Carol said, her long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail, her red, blue and gold Ms. Marvel uniform residing on her body. They passed the prisoner cells that were designed especially for the mutant prisoners. However, as they turned the corner, they saw Alpha Flight members James and Heather Hudson covered in what appeared to be a greenish slime.

"Hey, Vindicator, Guardian, was that . . .?" John asked.

"Yeah, it was Toad again," James – Guardian – groaned as he reached for a towel to clean his face off.

They could hear Toad screaming from his cell. "Let me outta here, you wannabe po-poes! This cell cannot hold me any longer!"

"Shut up Toad!" shouted the voice of Walter Langowski – known as Sasquatch due to his larger, towering, furry appearance that could only make him look like something similar to Big Foot.

"Toad, be quiet! No one wants to listen to you!" shouted James Proudstar, Warpath, as he made his way down the hallways to check on the non-mutant prisoners.

John groaned in frustration. Needing to deal with Toad was a pain in the ass, because he was a nuisance for a lot of the other prisoners that were there. He spent half his time shit-talking the members of Alpha Flight, and the other half spitting his disgusting greenish slime that he produced whenever they went into his cell to bring him his three meals a day. John and his younger brother, James, having grown up on a Cherokee reservation in Washington State, they had both been trained to be disciplined warriors their whole lives. That way of living had translated to their desire to be actual warriors, both men joining the Army together; however, they both got dishonorably discharged after they had been exposed as mutants. In an effort to continue being involved in the military somewhat, they founded Alpha Flight with Carol Danvers, who had sought them out after having found them drinking away and getting into bar fights.

"Sorry about that, Professor. Toad, he's a . . . he's a _special_ kind of prisoner in here," Carol groaned, her blue eyes clenching tight.

"No worries, Carol, no worries," Professor Xavier assured her. "Though, you know Tony would be more than happy to provide you with whatever weapons or transportation necessary."

"Well, weapons are not really too necessary. You're looking at a team of actual superheroes," said Carol with a grin. "Besides, with Toad in here, you know I don't take shit, okay?"

"Yeah, we all know, Carol," said John with a small smile on his face as they continued to pass the mutant wing. The mutant wing consisted of several mutant prisoners. Toad was the biggest troublemaker in the wing. Being green-skinned with yellow, glossy eyes, an amphibious agility, and a long tongue, Toad was definitely the biggest misfit out of them all. He annoyed every single prisoner, and everyone would like nothing more than for him to shut up. There were other mutant prisoners as well. The prisoners ranged from having purple hair, blue skin, overly-large hands and feet, having fish-like appearances and huge amounts of fur covering their bodies. Some of the mutant prisoners were Morlocks – mutants who lived underground in the sewers of large cities who committed acts that made them look more like vigilantes than anything else. The situation with the mutant wing was temporary for a few years until Rikers Island in New York added a mutant wing. That was when prison transfers were going to commence.

"Besides, any little work that we do here as Alpha Flight will be worth it. It's not like mutants can serve in the military at all," John continued to say.

Suddenly, that was when they could see Jean-Paul and Jeanne-Marie Beaubier turning the corner with anxious expressions on their faces. Known as Northstar and Aurora, Jean-Paul and Jeanne-Marie were twins and their powers of light generation and manipulation correlated. Both had been rejected from the Canadian military due to their mutations. Jeanne-Marie's powers came with side-effects of her being dissociative, but, thankfully, her dissociative identity was a heroic one, and not a bad one. However, Jean-Paul was thankful that at least the Canadian military didn't have a don't-ask-don't-tell policy for gays, considering he was gay.

"Northstar, Aurora, what is it? You two looked as though you've seen a ghost," Carol said.

"Ms. Marvel, Thunderbird, you two might want to come see this. Professor Xavier, we'll need you too. It's urgent," Jeanne-Marie said in her thick, French-Canadian accent as she led them to the medical bays of the Alpha Flight base. When they entered the medical laboratories of the base, inside resided a rugged man lying on a medical table, tranquilizer darts in his body and his wrists strapped down to the table with metal restraints. However, despite the tranquilizers, the man was very much awake, and looking extremely feral. He had dark hair, a muscular body, no clothing, and deep dark eyes that looked animal-like. It was like staring down an angry tiger. His teeth were bared, and his fists were clenched, revealing two sets of metal claws in his hands that were surrounded by blood. He was covered in deep cuts that were already healing, and growls were escaping his throat.

"What the . . .?" Carol started to ask.

"We found him outside the base. He was running wild and we tried to tranquilize him; that's when Aurora got scratched," said Jean-Paul as he handed his sister a towel to put pressure on a bleeding wound on her arm.

"But how is this possible?" asked John.

"We do not know. But, we did manage to find this dog tag attached to him. We were wondering if you knew anything of this," said Jeanne-Marie as she tossed the metal tag to John and Carol. John, Carol and Xavier looked down at the tag, which read: Weapon X.

"Yeah, yeah, I recognize this, for sure," whispered John. "I thought that human and mutant enhancing programs were shut down."

"Well turns out they were not," Carol said. "I mean, the first enhanced super soldier was Captain America, John. It wouldn't surprise me if Weapon X is a program that is enhancing mutants, and by the looks of it, illegally. But why they would do that, well, that's something we should look into."

"Agreed," John said. "But, we have to deal with him. We don't even know his name."

"I think I can help with that," the professor said. He rolled his wheelchair closer to the feral, angry animal of a mutant who was struggling on the medical table, growls still escaping his throat, his teeth still clenched tight. 'I can help you,' Xavier told the man quietly as he spoke to the mutant telepathically. 'We mean you no harm . . .' Going closer to the medical table, Xavier placed his hands on the man's temples and proceeded to try and look into his mind. The memories were completely fuzzy, as if someone had taken away this man's mind and shoved something else inside. However, Xavier could pick up on a name.

'Logan . . .'

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower Weight Room – Present Day**

Jean and Scott sat in the weight room; awaiting the arrival of the two people that Xavier had contacted who were going to be giving them some special physical training. After years of living in such tumultuous environments and having not worked out in the longest time, Scott and Jean were in need of special physical therapies and training to help them gain more muscle. According to Xavier, Logan Howlett had had his memories stripped when he'd been experimented on by a heinous organization known as Weapon X. Carol Danvers, Logan's girlfriend, had been a military test pilot who had been experimented on after being caught in an accident by a shady group of aliens called the Skrulls. Carol had taken up the code name of Ms. Marvel to name herself after her deceased lover and mentor, Walter Lawson, whose codename had been Mar-Vell. Carol and Logan both had amnesia and struggled with remembering their lives prior to being made into living weapons, as there was a kindred spirit between them.

Soon enough, Carol Danvers and Logan walked into the weight room to find their first two students. They had trained Warren when he'd first joined X-Corporation, so this was not too much of a stretch for them dealing with two teenagers. Carol's blonde hair was cut short in the form of a bobbed haircut, her blue eyes sharp. She held herself like a soldier, having been an Air Force test pilot prior to her accident. She was wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of green cargo pants, and she looked quite regal. Logan stood by her side, holding her hand in his, his burly figure standing out. He stood in his yellow and black Wolverine uniform, his cowl off his face to reveal his dark hair and dark eyes.

"You two must be Scott and Jean," Carol said with a smile.

"Hi," Jean said, smiling back.

"Logan Howlett and Carol Danvers," Logan said, offering a very gruff smile in their direction rather than a handshake. "Xavier contacted us both saying yer in need of some training."

"Apparently," said Scott. Logan and Carol both noticed the way Scott held himself, similarly to the two of them. He definitely did have a soldier's discipline in his blood. Xavier had told Carol and Logan that Scott's father had been a military test pilot, and his mother had been a scientist for the military. Though Carol already knew this; Scott's father had been her general when she had started off in the Air Force. Physically, she looked age eighteen, having been eighteen back in 1988 which was when she had first became part of the Air Force, but, her age was in actuality thirty-eight due to the fact that her powers allowed her to age slower.

"Scott, I just want to say, I am aware of your parents' history with the military. In fact, your dad, before I'd gotten captured by aliens, he'd trained me in the Air Force, so when I heard of his death . . ." Carol started to say.

"It's fine, Ms. Danvers. I've accepted my parents' deaths a long time ago," Scott said.

"Well, I can say, your father was a brilliant man, Scott," Carol said, grinning. "I mean, he trained me when I had been eighteen; reason why I look so young is because, well, my powers allow me to age a lot slower . . ."

"Alright, let's start; after this we gotta get back to Canada. We've got some prisoner transporting we need to deal with," Logan said. "We'll start with ball toss, Carol, yer favorite, darlin'."

Carol flashed a smile at her lover as she went off to grab the medicine balls. She carried over the lightest ones, considering Scott and Jean's muscles were rather weak, Jean especially after having spent so many years in a mental asylum. They proceeded to start the training session. Logan personally couldn't wait until the "Danger Room" Forge was working on was completed. It was something he had been dying to get to use. Logan watched as he and Carol trained Scott and Jean. The two had a discipline to them unlike others Logan had seen, yet, they also had this sense of innocence that still hadn't been taken away despite years of being alone due to their mutations. It was amazing to him. He internally smiled as he watched Jean, who was so beautiful, her smile lighting up the room. In a sense, Logan could feel a kinship with the two of them; there was definitely a kindred spirit between him, Jean and Scott. Though, Logan was lucky in a sense because unlike Scott and Jean, he didn't have to deal with memories. Most of his memories about his past were fuzzy; he didn't remember who he'd been years ago. Heck, he didn't even know when he was born. But, that didn't mean he couldn't place himself into Scott and Jean's shoes enough to know that the two had been put through so much.

An hour into the weight training, Logan, Carol, Scott and Jean could hear Professor Xavier's voice through the intercom.

" _Scott, Jean . . . I was at Cerebro and I picked up a mutant signature in Boston, Massachusetts. I think you two might want to come and see this,"_ said Professor Xavier.

"Chuck, can it wait? We're still trainin'," Logan called out.

" _We can deal with that later, Logan,"_ said the professor.

Carol let out a sigh. "Just when I was looking forward to taking a break from hauling criminal mutants to the Alpha Flight base," she sighed.

"Carol, darlin' we can presume this later on; just go see what the Prof wants, you two." Logan offered Scott and Jean a rough smile. "We'll be here when ya get back."

Scott and Jean both nodded and proceeded to go down to the Cerebro chamber. As they walked down there together, Jean breathed out a sigh, especially as she picked up on Logan's thoughts accidentally, but, what she heard made her grin.

'Those two . . . they're endearing. A little rough around the edges, but, they're good kids . . .'

"Well, Logan and Carol seem nice," Jean said.

"Yeah, and the fact that Carol had trained under my father is a bit of a comfort for me . . . though Logan . . ." Scott said.

"He's intriguing is what he is," Jean said. "I mean, according to the professor Logan doesn't remember anything from his past. He's only starting to remember snippets of it from time to time. But, Carol seems to make him happy."

"I can agree," said Scott. "But, I wonder what the professor wants from us."

"Well, if he's calling the two of us to meet with him it must be pretty important. And given that Forge and Beast are busy down in Forge's workshop space working on tech for the Danger Room, and Warren being at school and Tony and Pepper being at Stark Tower, that leaves the two of us," said Jean as they made their way down in the elevator towards the basement. As they walked through the basement, they passed Forge's workshop space, where they could hear him tinkering away and in his element. Walking further into the basement, they found the Cerebro chamber, the one place that they hadn't been to yet in this place. They entered the Cerebro room to find the professor wearing the strange-looking helmet as files were shown on the computer.

"You wanted to see us, Professor?" asked Scott.

"Yes, Scott," said the Professor. "You see, this was how I found you two. Cerebro enhances my abilities. The blue dots are all the humans and the red are the mutants."

"This is remarkable," Jean whispered; her eyes widening a she felt all the more interested.

"Indeed. I was down here upgrading Cerebro when I caught a mutant signature in Boston. I'm asking you two to come with me because there's someone we need to find, and I have a feeling that the two of you would be able to connect with him given your age and what you two have been through. His name is Bobby Drake . . . his powers appear to allow him to manipulate cold and ice on the molecular level. His power appears to have manifested at this point because Cerebro found him after he froze the whole entire boys' locker room of his high school," said Professor Xavier. "I managed to contact Bobby's parents on the phone, but, they displayed unwillingness to speak with me about it on the phone, even if I am working with Tony Stark."

"Well, where's Bobby now?" Jean asked.

"That's the thing; he managed to get himself out of the locker room and he escaped from there, but, his parents had been called by the principal to come and pick him up. From what I've picked up on their thoughts in Cerebro, they're not thrilled that their son is a mutant," Professor Xavier explained.

"Don't you think Warren would be best for an assignment like this?" asked Scott, given their winged friend's history with his own parents.

"He's in class, Scott. There's no way he can just drop everything he is doing for this," Jean said with a heavy sigh. "But, I have a feeling that Bobby's parents won't be thrilled about speaking with us, either. I mean, you're talking about a telekinetic and telepathic, and a person with two bazookas behind each eyeball."

"It's worth a try, Jean," the professor said.

"Well who would pilot the plane? I mean, I'm assuming if Bobby's parents are not thrilled about his mutation they'll be even less thrilled about meeting Mr. McCoy," Jean pointed out in a cynical tone.

"Hank's taking the jet, Jean; it's decided. If Bobby's parents have a problem with it, they can take it up with me," said Xavier as he proceeded to take off the Cerebro helmet and roll out of the chamber.

"Professor, since I am a telepath, would I ever get around to using Cerebro?" Jean asked.

"Not quite yet, Jean," Professor Xavier said. "I still want to train you to harness your telekinesis. I managed to be able to place blocks on your powers, but, I am thinking that tonight we should start, right after we are done. It's all about simple concentration, my dear."

Jean nodded. She felt thankful that at least she wasn't having telekinetic flare ups throughout the day, but, her time in the mental hospital had left her significantly scarred emotionally. Professor Xavier had said that that was a normal thing given her history as a mental patient, but, Jean wasn't so sure given just how violent her nightmares were. Most of her nightmares were about the hallucinations she had suffered through in the mental hospital and sensing the deaths of her mom and dad in the car accident.

Scott seemed to sense Jean's feelings of sadness as her reached over and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She knew that he was in the same boat as her. He and his brother had been separated too, but, at least they still had a relationship while Scott's little brother Alex was living out in California with an adoptive family. Jean had no clue where any of her siblings were, but, she did know that she wanted to try and seriously look for them.

As they walked down the halls towards the hanger where the two Blackbirds were held, Jean and Scott boarded the plane with Xavier, they noticed Hank on the jet already in the pilot's seat.

Scott and Jean sat there on the jet for the flight to Boston, sitting next to each other not exchanging other words between each other as Jean's eyes closed.

"Jean, I know what you're thinking; I don't even have to be a telepath to know you're thinking about your parents and your siblings," Scott whispered, keeping his voice low. Jean had told him a lot in the three days that they had spent together; they had bonded immediately over having been separated from their siblings and losing their parents at a young age. Though Scott considered himself lucky that he didn't have to feel his parents dying inside his head like Jean had had to at the time.

Jean nodded. "Yeah," she whispered as they passed over the Catskills, getting closer and closer to Boston. "I'm just surprised I hadn't had nightmares yet . . ."

"Me too," said Scott quietly. "I wouldn't be surprised if they come soon, though."

Jean nodded. After that, they didn't say anything else. It wasn't like they couldn't talk about it; it was just that they hated to talk about it. They both continued to sit in silence until they finally landed in Boston at an airport, where a car was waiting to pick them up. They rode in the car to Bobby's house, Scott and Jean staying quiet for the most part, preferring the silence between them.

* * *

 **Bobby Drake's House – Boston, Massachusetts**

Bobby found himself sitting up in his room, staring out the window as his hands shook slightly, which he knew was not from the cold that he was feeling. The manifestation of his mutation had shaken him deeply. After having gotten himself out of the locker room in effort to avoid being lynched and humiliated by his classmates, he'd been called into the principal's office where he was told to wait for his parents to come and pick him up from school. When his parents had arrived, they didn't even look at him. It made Bobby feel sick to the pit of his stomach that his parents seemed to be ashamed of him. All Bobby had wanted to do growing up was to please his parents even though he slacked off in school and acted like a goofball. He'd always been the one to make his parents laugh growing up; they had always appreciated his colorful personality and sense of humor. But, now, his parents didn't even seem to know who he was anymore. More than anything, it hurt, and that was exactly what Bobby had been afraid of. He'd always feared stepping out of the perfectly straight line his parents had wanted him to walk in his whole life. Now, his worst fears were coming true, and he hated it more than anything.

'God, what am I gonna do? What the hell am I going to do?' he thought to himself as he sat there in his room.

Bobby's eyes stung with tears just thinking about what had happened that afternoon. He knew that he could not go back to his high school, because if he did, his life would be over. Additionally to that, he found himself sitting there questioning his sexuality. Was he gay? Was he straight? He did not know, and that was what scared him. And not too many things in life scared him, because growing up he'd been fearless, telling bullies off by shooting at them funny one-liners and jokes. He was able to laugh off any situation, even situations that made him feel uncomfortable. This time around, he felt that he wasn't going to have that kind of luck at all. He ran a hand through his blonde hair. He didn't know what was going to happen to him now that his mother and father knew that he was a mutant. Additionally, he knew that his mother had been on the phone with somebody earlier and that someone was coming by the house to talk to him, possibly about his mutation. He hoped and prayed that it wasn't some counselor who would attempt to tell Bobby that his mutation was a choice. Suddenly, that was the moment he could hear his mother calling him.

"Bobby! There's someone here to see you they're coming upstairs!" his mother said to him.

Bobby let out a sigh. Right now, he didn't want to see anybody. It seemed as though no one understood what he was going through right now. Being outed as a mutant to his classmates had left him shaken and humiliated. When his bedroom door opened, it opened to reveal two people, a redheaded girl and a dark-haired boy with red sunglasses on his face, looking to be older than him by at least a couple of years. Nonetheless, at least they weren't kids from his school; that was the last thing that Bobby needed right now.

"You okay?" the girl asked him as she came into the room. Her green eyes seemed genuine and kind, something Bobby hadn't seen in the eyes of any of his classmates who had constantly looked to push information out of him for their own agenda.

Bobby let out a sigh. He wanted really badly to brush this aside. But, he also knew that he couldn't hide forever.

"I-I don't know," Bobby admitted as the two older teens made their way to sit on his bed. "Who are you?"

"Scott Summers and Jean Grey," said Scott. "We-We heard about what had happened at your high school."

"How do you know that?" Bobby asked.

"I'm pretty sure that your mom had been on the phone with someone earlier; his name is Professor Charles Xavier. I'm sure you've heard of his work with Tony Stark," said Jean.

Bobby nodded. Of course he'd heard of Tony Stark, the genius billionaire prodigal son of Howard and Maria Stark. "Yeah, yeah I have. I have heard of that X-Corporation company."

"Well, Bobby we, we are aware that you are a mutant," Jean said quietly.

"I don't even wanna talk about it right now," Bobby whispered. "When **–** When I was in there . . . when I froze the whole locker room, I wanted to stop, but I couldn't stop. I-I was so scared." He stopped talking as the tears began to well up in his eyes. If he kept talking about it, he would cry. He did not want to cry in that moment.

"Yeah, yeah, we can understand that," Scott said quickly, sensing the younger teen was starting to get upset. "But the thing is, Bobby, Professor Xavier, he can give you the opportunity to be part of this. Given, you'll be going to high school in New York, but, it's better than this at this point."

"So you two are mutants?" asked Bobby.

"Yes. Yes we are. We-We just learned that we were mutants at least three days ago. For so many years I thought that I had gone insane and I felt like a freak," Jean said.

"Why did you think you were crazy?" Bobby asked her.

"Because I had spent so many years of my childhood up until now in a mental hospital; it started off as telepathy, but, it grew into telekinesis," Jean explained.

"My mutation is simple. I've got a bazooka behind each eyeball; optic blast beams," Scott said, pointing to his sunglasses. "They're out of control because I have brain damage; I suffered a plane crash as a kid. Bobby, we're just saying this because Xavier, he genuinely wants to help you. For us, that's a rare thing to find."

"I'll definitely consider it," said Bobby. However, that was the moment Jean picked up on Bobby's thoughts. It was completely unintentional but Bobby was projecting his thoughts on a thousand loudspeakers.

'I know that this is an opportunity that I should not pass up. I'd be crazy to pass something like this up. But . . . but I'm just so unsure of this. I mean, I'm not even sure if I am gay or not. What if I _am_ gay? Oh _God,_ my parents would for sure disown me if they found out . . .'

Jean sat there as she heard Bobby's thoughts. The fact that he was questioning his sexuality and wondering whether or not he was gay was something Jean wasn't expecting. However, Jean also knew that some wanted to keep their thoughts private. She could tell that this was something that Bobby wasn't even ready to admit to himself. However, Jean also wanted to make sure that Bobby knew that it was okay if he had his uncertainties regarding his sexuality. She knew that being a mutant was hard, but coming from such a strict upbringing and being in the closet as a gay teenager was harder. Jean just swallowed as Bobby considered his options and whether or not he wanted to go with them and the professor and Hank. It would be a big transition for Bobby to go from living with his parents under their roof to living at X-Corporation Tower. That was the moment Bobby opened his mouth, having come up with his decision.

"I guess I'll do it. There's no way I can go back to my high school, unless I want to get burned on a stake by my classmates for being a mutant," Bobby said.

"Alright, I'll tell the professor and Dr. McCoy that you're game," Scott said, resting a hand on Bobby's shoulder and giving it a slight squeeze. However, Jean lingered in Bobby's room, feeling the need to speak with him regarding the fact that he had been projecting to her.

Jean hesitated before starting to talk. "Bobby . . ." she started to say. "I-I just want to say this. I don't want to feel as though I'm embarrassing you, but I am a telepath, and you were projecting your thoughts on a loudspeaker. Or at least twenty loudspeakers."

"What exactly did you hear?" Bobby asked her, turning to look at her.

"I . . ." Jean started. She didn't know what to say to Bobby without making him feel as though she was intruding into his privacy. "I know that you're questioning whether or not you're . . ."

"Gay?" Bobby asked her, finishing the sentence for her.

"Yeah," Jean said. "I want you to know that if you're gay, that I don't think anything of it. As far as I'm concerned it doesn't matter. Just know that it's alright if you're questioning your sexuality . . ."

"Jean, I-I'm not even sure if I am. But, I do know if I am, my parents would disown me. You've got no clue . . . they already reacted badly to me being a mutant. I mean, they're not speaking to me; that should tell you something about them. For all I know, they're probably glad to get rid of me," Bobby whispered. His voice was shaking; he was obviously terrified.

"Bobby, that's not true. I've picked up on your parents' thoughts. They're just afraid of what it is that they do not understand, but, they still love you very much. They only want what they think is best for you," Jean said softly, reaching over to take the younger teen by the hand, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"What do your parents think about . . . about you being a mutant?" Bobby asked. He was trying to hold his tears back.

"My parents are dead. They got killed in a car accident that separated me from my siblings. That accident had caused my mutation to manifest because I heard their thoughts as they died," Jean whispered. "Scott's parents are dead too. The plane crash Scott got caught in killed his parents. So, we wouldn't know what our parents think about our mutations, but, I _do_ know just from having read the thoughts of your mom and dad that they don't hate you; they'll never hate you."

Bobby let out a sigh as he took in what Jean had to say. The fact that this girl just knew the right things to say made him feel a little better, considering that Jean had had the sensitivity to wait until Scott had left the room to talk to him about his confusion regarding his homosexuality. That was the definition of a person that had compassion, and Bobby couldn't help but feel appreciative.

"Jean, please, you-you cannot say anything about this to anyone, please," Bobby whispered to her.

"I won't say anything to anybody. I promise," Jean assured him around a gentle smile. She watched as the tears welled up in the younger teen's eyes. She could tell that her promise meant the world to him. "Come here." Jean just carefully leaned forward and pulled Bobby into a hug, feeling him returning the embrace as a silent "thank you."

* * *

 **Up next: Gaining Control**


	7. Issue 7: Gaining Control

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier owns X-Corporation with the prodigal son of Howard and Maria Stark, a company that hopes to secure the futures of mutants across America. Having recruited his two legal wards, Jean Grey and Scott Summers, Xavier finds the mutant signature of fourteen-year-old Bobby Drake, a closeted, ice-controlling teenager from Boston._

 _As all of this happens, Bobby, Jean and Scott find that they are in training sessions with Professor Xavier's contacts from Alpha Flight, Logan Howlett and Carol Danvers, two tortured souls who suffer from amnesia due to their shady pasts of being living weapons._

* * *

 **Issue 7: Gaining Control**

 **Stark Tower – Tony's Office**

For Tony Stark, he'd had a long morning at Stark Industries, and was looking forward to getting to X-Corporation Tower to meet the newest recruit, Bobby Drake.

Tony sat there at his desk, knowing that the important thing for his company to do was to build more of the Jericho missiles so that they could get them into the hands of the U.S military as soon as possible. Any little thing to help supply the Army of the United States was worth doing. He additionally was working on supplying weapons to the members of Alpha Flight, even though Logan Howlett and Carol Danvers insisted that the only weapons that were needed on the Alpha Flight team were super powers, but, Tony was thinking of the human members of Alpha Flight who didn't have super powers.

As Tony continued to do his paperwork, he drank his fifth cup of coffee that he'd had that day. If he wasn't allowed to have booze, he could at least have caffeine. If he didn't have an alcoholic beverage in his hands, he was seen with coffee or Red Bull. Red Bull tasted like shit, but, he didn't care. He needed something to get himself through the work day which consisted of long hours, considering that he was running two different companies. On top of that, he was dealing with Stane Enterprises and Trask Industries coming up with plans to build Sentinels under the suggestion of Norman Osborn, so that meant it was crucial that both Stark Industries and X-Corporation succeeded.

As Tony finished off his coffee, Pepper walked into the room. "Mr. Stark, I have your itinerary for next week. As you know, you have that event that you need to attend in Las Vegas in about two weeks, which is around the time that the missiles get into the hands of the military, officially. Let's hope that this time around Magneto won't trash that event."

"Miss Potts, you know whenever we say that we're speaking too soon," Tony said with a roll of his eyes. "Besides, we need to get to X-Corp . . . I heard Xavier managed to get another recruit. He's a bit green, but, Xavier thinks that there's potential there with him."

"Of course," Pepper said. "I'll have Happy get the car ready."

"Thanks. Okay, Friday, it's time for me to get to X-Corp now. Tell the workers to continue working on the missiles and to make sure that they're ready for shipment next week. Also, make sure that those R5 RPGs get shipped to Alberta so that the members of Alpha Flight get them in time for tomorrow," Tony said.

" _Very well, sir,"_ Friday replied back to him.

Tony got up from his desk and met Pepper and Happy in the private car that was going to be taking them to the X-Corporation Tower, which was at least twenty blocks away from Stark Tower. When they got to X-Corp Tower, Tony immediately went up to the medical quarters, that being the first place that he was going to look. When he arrived, he could see Hank McCoy was running some tests on Bobby, who was on the exam table.

"Hey, Beast," said Tony. "How're things looking?"

"Well, from what I can tell Bobby, aside from your body temperature being lower than most regular humans, your health is exceptional. I was expecting that your body temperature would be lower than normal. It seems to stem from that fact that you can project extreme cold from your body and you can manipulate water on the molecular level. That can possibly explain the fact that you can form your body into organic ice. It's remarkable," Hank said, turning to the youngest inhabitant of X-Corporation Tower.

"So, I'm pretty much a walking ice cube?" Bobby asked.

"You could say that," Tony said with a grin. "Tony Stark," he said, shaking Bobby's hand.

Bobby managed a grin back in Tony's direction. Already, he found himself finding it easy with fitting in. Scott and Jean were awesome. Hank was a genius in himself and had the same passion for mathematics Bobby had and pretty much spoke his language. It made him feel more comfortable than he'd ever felt in quite a while, which was a relief.

"Well, I know for a fact that the professor would like to start training you, Scott and Jean on your abilities as soon as possible, but, I would like to see just how far your mutation can go, Bobby. Because my charts are showing that if you are around enough water, let's say the ocean, you have the potential to freeze the entire continent in ice. It's a scale unlike anything I've ever seen before . . . you might be the first class five mutant I've ever come across, well, if you don't count Professor Xavier's son David," said Beast.

"What do you mean by class five?" Bobby asked.

"Basically, class five mutants are omega level mutants. You have the potential to control ice and water around you on a rather God-like scale, Bobby. It truly is something spectacular, especially for a fourteen-year-old boy," Beast explained with a smile on his face at this discovery.

Bobby grinned at Beast's explanation. Just the mere thought of having the powers of a God amazed him. It just made Bobby desire to test his powers further and see what more he could do with them.

"Bobby, why don't you go to the weight room and join Scott, Jean, Logan and Carol in some weight training until Warren gets back?" asked Hank.

Bobby nodded and exited the medical labs, unable to keep the stupid smile off his face. Tony grinned at the sight. The fact that Bobby wasn't the least bit damaged by the traumatic experience he'd been through of his mutation manifesting in his high school spoke louder than words could ever describe. Tony in a way wished he could have Bobby's brain for a day, because the boy was so carefree and relaxed.

"I wish I can have that kid's mind for just an hour of my day; he's so carefree," Tony said with a smile.

"Indeed, Tony. With Bobby, he's actually got quite the wit. You never know what's going to come out of that kid's mouth. He's spent the past twenty minutes or so questioning me about my mutation and telling me so many stories about himself. The fact that he's interested in math is quite refreshing, I might say. But, getting him to take things seriously might pose as a challenge. But with him, I see a good kid," Beast explained with a fond smile.

"Absolutely . . . you know Hank those four kids; they have the potential to be able to change the world for something good; they truly do. Scott has so much potential to have a career in a military-like position. Jean has such a willingness to learn about medicine she can very well be a doctor. Warren is smart in the business aspect of things. They truly are remarkable . . . they're special," Tony said.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Weight Room**

Carol and Logan found themselves continuing with training Scott and Jean, Bobby shortly joining them in the session. Logan and Carol knew that Scott and Jean were especially thankful, considering they've spent so many years feeling weak, that gaining physical strength back was a blessing for the two of them. It truly was something showed Logan that there were others like him, some even less fortunate than he was. Currently, Logan found himself spotting Scott while the kid was on the bench press, lifting weights.

"C'mon, Slim. Do it again, bub!" Logan insisted, despite Scott having done it twenty times already.

"Logan, he's done it twenty times already. How many times do you want him to do it?" Carol asked him.

"Oh fer Chrissake Carol, like I've ever known ya to be easy on anybody! Please don't tell me yer goin' soft! Ya were experimented on by the Skrulls fer the love a God," Logan shouted with a roll of his eyes.

"Ease up, or I'm going to kick your ass later. Now, lighten up, or else, no sex for the rest of the week," Carol said to her lover in a tone that he knew not to fight with. "Because you know I'm probably the only woman that can kick your ass; that's why we started dating, because you're turned on by a woman who is your equal."

"Ms. Danvers, its fine. I can do it again," Scott grunted as he lifted the weight off of his chest. He was already starting to get drenched with sweat. Logan continued to watch him.

"Okay, Scott. But I should warn you; Logan tends to be even more of a hard-ass than me. But that doesn't mean you have to take his shit," Carol said.

"Carol . . ." Logan said in a warning tone.

"It's the truth," said Carol as she watched Scott continue with the bench press. "Just because his father was a military pilot doesn't mean that he's a soldier, Logan."

"He's got the discipline of one," Logan retorted back.

"Watch your tongue with me, you wise-ass son of a bitch," Carol snipped back. It was almost hard for Scott and Jean to believe that Logan and Carol were lovers, because one minute, they were showing affections for each other, and the next minute, they were bantering and snipping with one another. But, it sure as hell was amusing.

"Carol, I can take Logan's shit. I grew up with a military test pilot for a dad, he made me and my brother practice CQC, I can keep up just fine," Scott groaned.

"I'm beginning to like this kid, Carol." Logan grinned slightly. He watched as Scott did a few more reps.

"You like him because he follows orders and obeys authority," Carol replied back.

"It doesn't mean I kiss his ass," Scott groaned out.

"That's why I respect ya, kid," Logan told him. He proceeded to have Scott do the bench press five more times, which would equal it up to at least twenty-seven times. "Tomorrow, we'll see if you can do this fifty times."

Scott grunted as he finally lifted the weight off his chest, setting it aside as he sat up. He looked across the room to see Jean being taught boxing by Carol. Tony's bodyguard, Happy, was currently training Bobby on how to box as well.

"Alright, Scott. That's it for ya for today," Logan told him, rubbing his shoulders and ruffling his sweaty hair slightly as a form of silent affection. "We'll do more of this tomorrow, bub."

"Thank you," Scott said sincerely.

"It's no problem at all. Carol, darlin', once you're done with Jeannie we should get on the first flight back to Canada. I'm pretty sure that Proudstar and that brother of his would want our help with transporting some of the prisoners. After what happened with Toad being broken out a month ago I don't want any more of those prisoners outta my sight again," Logan said.

"Of course," Carol said once she was finished training Jean. "Alright, Jean, you're good for today. We can continue this tomorrow."

"So we're done with our workout?" Jean asked, pushing her hair out of her face. She couldn't remember the last time she'd worked out like that. Growing up she'd played club soccer with her twin sister all the time, so when she'd stopped due to the deaths of her parents, she'd hoped and prayed every day that she could one day go back to that again.

"Yeah," Scott said as Logan and Carol walked out of the weight room, bidding goodbye to them. Bobby was soon enough finished with his own training, drenched in sweat as he took his boxing gloves off his hands.

"Alright, Bobby, good job," Happy told him. "Hit the showers, kids. Xavier wants to start training you all with your powers in an hour."

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Professor Xavier's Office**

Within the next hour or so, Scott, Jean and Bobby found themselves being trained on their powers individually by the professor, being taught simple control. Scott had some control over his mutation thanks to his ruby-quartz lenses, but, Bobby and Jean were going to be a challenge. The professor wanted to start with Jean first, knowing that he needed to help her with her mental shields as well as control her telekinesis.

For the past hour, the professor had been tutoring Jean on mental shielding and blocking people's thoughts out. The process was long and exhausting, but, it was necessary to help Jean gain some control over her telepathy. After finishing her telepathic training, the professor allowed Jean to rest her mind for a little before training her on her telekinesis. Part of Jean's telekinetic training was practicing lifting heavy metal balls and moving them around. However, Jean was finding it hard to focus her mind in effort to lift the balls off of the table. Jean closed her eyes, trying to gather her mind to focus on where the metal spheres were located so that she could lift them using her telekinesis, but, every time she tried to lift the balls, they shook violently before crashing loudly down to the floor.

"I'm sorry, Professor," Jean groaned as she rubbed her aching temples, collapsing on the couch. "I'm just not cut out for this."

"Jean, you will get it eventually. Don't get frustrated. It's just that your powers are simply growing and your mind is trying to play catch up with it all," said the professor.

Jean let out a sigh as she opened her eyes. "You keep saying that, but, I just do not think that it's my day today," she said.

"Give it some time, my dear. I promise you, we will work every day until you get some control over it. How about I work with Bobby for a little while and you go to your room and relax until dinner?" Professor Xavier offered her.

Jean let out a deep sigh again. "I really am sorry, Professor. It's just . . . I've spent so many years being _out_ of control, that now, I finally have the opportunity to be _in_ control and I'm not, it's frustrating."

"I can understand that. It'll just take some time, Jean," the professor said.

"How much time, though?" asked Jean as they heard knocking at the door to the professor's office. The door opened to see Scott, Warren and Candy coming into the room.

"Hey, professor, what happened in here? I come home from school and I hear something break," said Warren.

"Training," Jean groaned out. "It's just . . . I finally have a shot at being in control over my powers for once and it's just . . ."

"Jean, it'll take you time to get a hang of it," Warren said.

"Easy for you to say. Shortly after you got your powers you took a chance with your wings and did a test flight . . . you said that it was so smooth that first time. Why can't I have that?" Jean asked.

"Because psychic powers are different than having wings, Jean," said Warren. "You cannot compare yourself to me or to Scott."

Jean rubbed her temples. "I still want to try again," she insisted.

"Are you sure you want to attempt pushing yourself harder than you have to?" asked Candy wearily.

"Yeah," Jean insisted, the stubbornness evident in her as Scott went over to her, rubbing her shoulders. Scott being near her seemed to have a calming effect on her. It was no secret to anybody that Scott and Jean were already growing into having something special between each other despite having just met at least three days ago. They both came from unpleasant circumstances, yet, they didn't allow their situations of losing their families and being put through things unimaginable taint their spirit. It amazed Warren and Candy and the professor to no end. Jean rose up from the sofa to attempt raising the metal spheres again off the table. She wanted nothing more than to try again.

"Alright, Jean, let's start again," said the professor. However, this time, before Jean started, Scott kept a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently as Jean readied her telekinesis. Jean closed her eyes, and slowly, but surely, the metal balls rose off the table, shaky and unstable at first, but, she allowed her mind to relax as she took a deep breath.

"That's a good beginning, Jean. Now move them slowly to the right . . ."

'You've got this, Red,' Scott told her telepathically. 'It's okay; just breathe and relax.'

Jean slowly but surely moved the metal spheres to the right, and then to the left, and then rose them up slightly higher. Her head started to hurt again, causing the balls to tremble slightly, but, Scott's calming presence seemed to help her stay focused on the task at hand.

"Alright Jean, now try setting the spheres down, slowly," Xavier told her.

Jean swallowed as she focused her mind to lower to spheres down onto the table as slowly as possible. Concentrating as best she could, she allowed the metal balls to land onto the table gently before sitting herself down onto the couch again, rubbing her temples.

"How did I do?" Jean asked.

"You did perfect for your second time around," the professor told her with a smile, congratulating her. "But, you still have some ways to go with training. We will continue these sessions at least three times a week until you get the hang of it, Jean. I believe that you will be able to do this just fine."

Jean nodded, feeling glad that she accomplished something that day. Scott and Warren both hugged her firmly.

"Well done, Jeannie," Warren whispered, rubbing her shoulders proudly.

"Thanks, Professor," Jean said with a smile on her face before getting up to leave the room with Warren, Scott and Candy.

* * *

 **Up next: A Place for My Head**

 **A/N: Happy Sunday, everyone! Hoping you all are liking this new update schedule for Peace in Our Time volume 1! Remember, if you like what you see, be sure to follow, favorite and review! Peace out and have a morphinominal Sunday! Excelsior!**


	8. Issue 8: A Place for My Head

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier is challenged with owning X-Corporation, a company that keeps mutants employed and gives them an opportunity to secure their futures. As this happens, Xavier finds that he has taken in his two legal wards, Scott Summers and Jean Grey, two orphaned teens, as well as fourteen-year-old Bobby Drake, an ice-controlling mutant teen from Boston._

 _While Xavier has found success with taking in his adoptive children, Scott and Jean are still faced with psychological issues, including nightmares of their tragic pasts which haunt them in the night._

* * *

 **Issue 8: A Place for My Head**

 **Cockrum Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska – Nine Years Ago**

Eight-year-old Scott Summers found himself getting ready to board a private plane with his mother, father and younger brother. The minute his mother told him that they were going on an impromptu, free vacation to Hawaii, it was an opportunity Scott and his six-year-old brother, Alex, could hardly refuse. Their father being an Air Force test pilot and their mother being a genius military scientist, they had opportunity to go on free trips in the summer all the time. It happened suddenly. Their mother had announced that they were going to Hawaii for a little family get-away. It being in the middle of July, Alex and Scott were both looking forward to the heat of the Hawaiian suns and enjoying the ocean, due to the cool summers that they got in Alaska all the time.

Scott stood there in his Air Force sweatshirt and jeans, clutching Alex's hand hard in his own as his parents talked privately with the person giving them the plane. They both had looks of stress permeated on their faces, though they tended to hide what they did from their sons as far as their work went. Their mother had told them at least three months or so ago that she was pregnant with another baby, and that they would be having another younger sibling joining the family soon. It excited Alex and Scott, the idea of having a little brother or sister. His parents were both whispering quietly, looking as though they were trying their hardest to hide something. They knew only as much as their parents told them. They knew that their mother had been working on a top-secret project that she couldn't share with anybody at all, including her boys. But, Alex and Scott didn't care. They were just happy to get away for a while.

Christopher and Katherine Summers walked over to their sons once everything was finalized, smiles on their faces.

"Are you boys ready to go?" Christopher asked, lifting Scott up and onto his shoulders. Scott nodded as he wrapped his arms around his daddy's neck to hold on, a big smile on his face as his eyes lit up with joy. Scott's appearance was exactly like his dad's. They both had deep chestnut hair and a square-like jaw, but, Scott's eyes were his mother's. They were a clear, crystal blue . . . and very blue at that. Alex resembled his mother with blonde hair, but his eyes were his father's light brown color.

"Yeah!" Alex said in excitement as they boarded the plane. Katherine grinned as she held Alex's hand, pressing a wet kiss to his cheek, causing her youngest son to giggle. She rubbed her pregnant stomach as she sat on the plane, a relaxed look on her face as Christopher sat in the cockpit to pilot the aircraft. Katherine set her boys up with the TV that was on the plane and put on a movie for them to watch. She also set them up with headphones and MP3 players, which consisted of music including bands such as Linkin Park, Nickelback, Skillet and Three Days Grace.

Scott and Alex sat there in their seats, listening to music as they thumb-wrestled with each other, an episode of _Johnny Quest_ playing on the DVD player on the plane. They didn't even hear their parents talking worriedly in the cockpit about their mother's work. For all these years, Katherine and Christopher were determined to keep their boys' innocence by not allowing their sons to know too much of what Katherine did for a living. As far as they knew, their mom was a military scientist who was working on uncovering something rather vital; that was all that they knew. And Katherine and Christopher wanted nothing more than to keep it that way, because it was for their sons' own protection.

As Christopher piloted the airplane, Scott and Alex continued to have their fun, playing with their Transformers that they had brought with them in a suitcase filled with toys, which included action figures and books to keep them occupied on the trip. Alex soon turned his attention to a copy of _Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,_ while Scott's attention stayed plastered to the TV, watching _Johnny Quest_ and focusing on the plot of the episode.

Suddenly, that was when it happened. They could hear the sounds of something crashing into the plane and the smell of something burning, like a fire.

"Mommy, what's burning?" asked Scott in a worried voice as his father instantly put the plane on autopilot to check and see what was going on.

"Oh good Lord," whispered Katherine in worry. The smell of a fire started to fill the air. The plane started to malfunction and shake as Christopher checked what was happening.

"Daddy, what's going on?" Alex asked.

"Katherine, Kath, honey, get the boys into parachutes, now!" shouted Christopher in worry for the safety of his two little boys.

"Daddy what's happening?" Scott asked in worry as his mother got him and his little brother into chutes. Christopher and Katherine knelt down in front of their boys.

"Scott . . . listen to me, listen very carefully, Scooter," Christopher said, taking his son's face into his hands as tears filled his eldest son's eyes. His father had been calling him "Scooter" since he was five. "We are going to need you both to be very brave and jump from the plane, okay?"

"What about you and Mommy?" Alex asked, tears already falling from his eyes as he started getting scared. Katherine wrapped her arms around Alex, holding him closely to her and stroking his hair, pressing kisses to his head.

"Mommy and I will be fine, you hear me?" Christopher told them. "Right now, you two just need to stick together, alright? You two need to jump!"

"No . . . No! We wanna stay with you!" Scott's tears were starting to pour down his cheeks as he started getting hysterical, shaking his head.

Katherine reached over and stroked Scott's face, kissing his cheek as her own tears welled in her eyes.

Christopher kissed his son's crown. "Scott . . . Scottie, listen, buddy, you need to take care of your brother, alright? You need to be strong now, son, okay?"

"No, no!" Alex sobbed, shaking his head as he clung to his daddy's hand. "I want you and Mommy!"

"Alex, sweetie, you two need to go!" Katherine and Christopher hugged their boys one more time, kissing their faces and whispering "I love you" to them. "Go . . . GO!" Katherine had tears filling her eyes as she opened the door to the plane. "Jump, alright? Go, now! We'll be okay!"

Scott grabbed his brother's hand, the high winds whipping across their faces. They turned to face their parents one last time before they leaped out of the malfunctioning plane. Falling through the winds, Scott and Alex both screamed, tears rolling down their faces as they crashed into the earth below. They pulled their chutes, but, Scott's got caught in a tree nearby as he crash-landed, hitting his head hard against the trunk of the tree. His vision swam around him as Alex rushed over to him, shaking him before everything around him went black.

* * *

 **Scott's Room in X-Corporation Tower – Present Day**

Scott burst awake, gasping for air. He turned to look at his alarm clock. It read 1:45 in the morning. He was covered in a cold sweat as his body shook. Rushing to his bathroom, he splashed some cold water onto his face, taking a deep breath.

He closed his eyes as he remembered his nightmare he had just had. It was always the same one: the day his parents had died. It always managed to haunt him, even in his dreams. Scott spluttered as he looked at his reflection, his eyes masked by his ruby-quartz sleeping goggles.

As Scott took deep breaths to relax his shaken body he remembered the dream so vividly; nightmares and hallucinations about the deaths of his parents were almost common, especially when he had lived in the orphanage in Alaska. He gripped the sink, noticing the tear tracks on his face. He wiped at them fiercely, trying to pull himself together the best that he could. As Scott finally began to relax, he turned his head to see Jean leaning against the doorway to his bathroom.

"You okay?" Jean asked him, the concern evident in her voice.

Scott nodded.

"Nightmares?" Jean asked.

"How did you figure?" Scott asked her.

"I sensed it." Jean shrugged.

"Jean, just go back to sleep, Red, I'll be fine." Scott forced a smile in her direction, but, Jean could see right through his façade that he was close to tears. She just simply walked over to him and hugged him firmly.

"You know you do not have to pretend that everything is okay, right?" Jean asked him softly, running her fingers through his thick dark hair.

Scott leaned in and breathed in Jean's scent, a scent of vanilla, lavender and strawberries that came from her shampoo and body wash that she used.

"Do you need some air?" Jean asked him.

Scott nodded, and the two proceeded to head out to the balcony to just sit out in the crisp, cool autumn night. The wind flowed through Jean's fiery red hair as she just sat there, looking so angelic and peaceful.

"How have you been holding up, Jean?" Scott asked her softly. "How've you been sleeping?"

"Not very well," Jean admitted. "I'm having telekinetic fits in my sleep. I already broke several items in there already. The professor is working on adding some psi-shielding in there in effort to make it more reinforced so that I do not hurt myself in my sleep."

"It'll do you some good," said Scott in agreement.

Jean took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah . . . I just . . . I just want the nightmares to stop. I mean, for the most part they're not about my parents dying. They are more so about my time in the mental asylum and hearing everything in there at once. It was awful."

"I can only imagine," said Scott, reaching over to wrap his arm around Jean's waist to pull her into a side-hug.

"I just worry about you, Slim," Jean said softly.

"Yeah, I know, Red. God, why does everything in our lives have to be so damn complicated?"

"It's not that complicated anymore."

"I know, Jean, I know it's simpler now, but, before, our lives were so screwed up. But, once an orphan, always an orphan," said Scott.

"Same goes for a mental patient," Jean whispered, leaning her head on Scott's shoulder.

The two friends just sat out there in the crisp fall night, watching the bright streetlights of New York City as they took in the view. They noticed Stark Tower a few blocks away from them. The night just felt peaceful; calm as the two teens just stayed out there, allowing their troubles to melt away, as if Scott hadn't just awoken from a nightmare about his past. Up until four days ago or so, their lives had been so tumultuous. To think that now, they were living some place with a roof over their heads, having clean clothes and eating three meals a day, it was still something that the two teens needed to wrap their heads around.

"You know, Slim . . . if you cannot sleep alone tonight, I can stay with you," Jean offered quietly.

"But what about the professor or Hank or Forge, what if they catch us? God forbid we get Warren or Bobby cracking jokes about it tomorrow," Scott said.

"Does it look as though I give a flying shit what they think?" Jean asked. "Besides, the professor knows that the two of us have sleeping problems; he wouldn't mind. And Warren's respectful of our privacy. The only one we'll have to deal with is Bobby, but, he won't be too much of an issue either."

"How do you figure?" Scott asked.

"Because believe it or not, Bobby, he's got his share of secrets as well," Jean said, thinking back to the conversation she had had with Bobby back in Boston regarding his sexuality. "I can agree that there are just some things that we do not wish to talk about. That's why when I read people's minds, I try not to mention it; because I can tell when someone wants to keep their thoughts private. I didn't have any privacy for my own thoughts for years; the least I can give someone is the respect to their own private thoughts that I didn't have for the last decade or so."

Scott finally nodded in agreement and the two friends proceeded to go to Scott's bed. Scott lay down underneath the covers as Jean got on top of the sheets and blankets. She leaned her head onto Scott's chest as he played with her hair gently.

"Sweet dreams, Red," Scott whispered to her.

"You too, Slim," Jean whispered around a soft smile. She proceeded to just lay there beside him as Scott hummed in her ear softly, and they found themselves falling asleep peacefully.

* * *

 **Up next: The Brotherhood**


	9. Issue 9: The Brotherhood

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Erik "Magneto" Lehnsherr proves to make the situation all the much more difficult for mutants across the globe with his extremist acts. Very much so recently, Magneto has announced to his old friend and X-Corporation owner, Charles Xavier, that he has formed a team called the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. His very recent act as leader of the Brotherhood was staging an attack against Tony Stark during the launching of his Jericho missiles. With hatred for mutants on the rise, Magneto is determined to prove that mutants should reign Supreme and superior to humans._

* * *

 **Issue 9: The Brotherhood**

 **Alberta, Canada Alpha Flight Facility – One Month Ago**

Logan "Wolverine" Howlett and Carol "Ms. Marvel" Danvers found they were the last ones leaving the Alpha Flight facility, as they often did. All they wanted to do was lock down the facility, leave it in custody and care of the guards that were there, and go back to their cabin to get some sleep. That was _if_ they were going to be able to sleep. Nightmares plagued their minds due to their amnesia that they both suffered through, and they found that sleeping in the same bed together helped them through it better than sleeping alone. Having been dating for at least three months, Logan and Carol found that transitioning from being teammates of eight years to lovers was easier than they thought, because they had a kindred spirit between the two of them where they both were products of experiments done to them against their will. They weren't quite sure what the future held for the both of them, but, they did know that they had something that was good between them. Logan could admit that part of why he fell for Carol was because she was a tough woman who had the balls to not take shit from him; it for sure turned him on. However, they both did sometimes wonder whether or not they were together simply because it was convenient for them and it would be something quick. But, what started off as something quick and convenient for the two of them became something deeper over the course of two months of them being together. They didn't know what it was, but, they sure as hell enjoyed it and they were content with where it was.

Logan rubbed a hand over his eyes as he breathed a deep yawn, Carol's arm snaking around him.

"You ready to get some sleep tonight, love?" Carol asked quietly.

"Yeah, darlin' . . ." said Logan. He kissed her lips softly. "Let's just get to bed. We can trust that these guards can handle babysitting the prisoners . . ."

"Yeah, but, Logan, I don't trust Toad as far as I can throw him," Carol whispered as they locked up the facility together so that they could head back to their cabin for the night. After turning in for the night, both fell asleep as peacefully as two troubled souls could sleep. However, their rest didn't stay uninterrupted.

The shrill ringing of the emergency phone line awoke Carol and Logan instantly. The couple groaned, Carol reaching for her sleep shirt and putting it back on over her head as Logan groaned, reaching for the phone as he noticed the time. It was 3:22 in the morning as Logan reached over for the phone, taking the call.

"Hey bub can ya leave us? We're sleepin' and . . ." Logan started to say, already in a bad mood after having been awoken at three o'clock in the morning.

" _Wolverine, you and the others have gotta get down here! We called Proudstar and his brother already! It's Toad . . . he's loose!"_ shouted one of their guards, Stanley Byrne.

"Byrne . . . if Toad's loose, you can handle it. Yer such a pussy interruptin' my time with my girlfriend like this at this hour!" Logan growled.

" _No, Logan! You don't get it! It's Magneto! You know we can't handle him alone!"_

"What good would that do me? I'm the one with the adamantium bones he'd kick my ass! You guys have got plastic bullets ya can use against him!" Logan growled as Carol got up from bed, her eyes puffy with sleepiness.

Carol simply grabbed the phone from Logan. "Don't worry, Byrne . . . we'll be there in five minutes!" she said. "Hang in there tight." She hung up the hotline.

"Carol, darlin' the fuck was that for?" Logan snapped.

"You heard him! They cannot handle Magneto on their own!" Carol said as she grabbed her Ms. Marvel uniform. She tossed Logan his "Wolverine" uniform. "Now c'mon, Wolverine, get your ass moving!"

Logan groaned as he got himself out of bed and he proceeded to change into his uniform. Once both he and Carol were changed into their uniforms, he got them both onto his motorcycle.

"Hang on, darlin'. It's gonna be a bumpy ride!" Logan said as he let the engines on his motorcycle rip. He was pretty that he broke the speed limit on his way to the facility, but, at this point, he did not care. As soon as they got to the Alpha Flight base, Logan and Carol jumped off his motorcycle and they made their way into the facility, running into John and James Proudstar, as well Anne McKenzie – Snowbird. From the looks of things, the facility was in disarray, the metal doors broken down and Alpha Flight guards struggling with locking away several of the mutant prisoners, some of them being omega-level class. They instantly knew that it was Magneto's doing, but, they could tell that he had had help from his daughter, Wanda, who could control and manipulate probability, as well as his Brotherhood member Lance Alvers – Avalanche, who could telekinetically tear things apart as well as create earthquakes. However, what alarmed Logan and Carol more was the fact that Byrne was down for the count, clutching a bullet wound that was in his stomach. He was coughing up blood; his eyes clenched shut in pain. He also had a wound in his head. Carol ran over to the guard, crouching down.

"Byrne . . . c'mon, stay with me. Hang in there!" Carol whispered anxiously, but, she knew that there was no saving Byrne, who had a bullet in the brain which was fatal to begin with. She knew that that had to be Magneto's handiwork. _"Shit,"_ she whispered as she let out a sigh. She got up and she and Logan made their way over to Snowbird, Thunderbird and Warpath.

"How many escaped?" asked Logan.

"Just Toad," groaned John, shaking his head. "I can't believe this. We leave these guys alone with the prisoners to babysit, and the shit hits the fan. This shows we gotta be down here at night more often."

"Better security is what we need, brother," said James as Eugene Judd – Puck – came forward with Dr. Michael Twoyoungmen – Shaman, both looking beat after having wrestled the remaining omega-levels back into their confinement.

"What I say, Mr. Logan is that we take up Mr. Tony Stark's suggestion of getting better weapons for the human guards," Shaman said.

* * *

 **The Brotherhood House – Present Day**

The sighting of torn-up sofas, fast food containers and cups and horrendous smells were almost common to come across when stepping into the house that belonged to Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. The TV blared loudly in the living room-area, and the refrigerator was broken, the smell of sour milk being overwhelming.

Sitting on the couch was Wanda Maximoff – the Scarlet Witch. Her codename was appropriate, considering she had mystical-based powers that allowed her fire hex bolts and manipulate probability. Her long, wavy dark brown hair flowed down her back, and her light brown eyes were as ethereal as the origins of her powers were. Sitting beside her on the ripped up sofa was her twin brother Pietro, who could move at super speeds and had an increased metabolism. His silvery hair resembled his father, Magneto's, and his deep brown eyes resembled his father's as well.

Additions to the group included Toad – Todd Tolansky, who they had just busted out of the Alpha Flight base a month ago, under leadership from Magneto himself. Toad's greenish, scaly skin, glassy eyes, long tongue and amphibious reflexes made him unwanted by anybody that glanced at him. To top it all off, Wanda was the object of his affections, much to her mortification. Another addition was Freddy Dukes – the Blob, who took on a whole new meaning of being obese. His overly-large, heavy body made him super strong, in addition to giving him an increased appetite which meant ordering an abundance of fast food to keep him satisfied. Only Fred Dukes could eat fifty soft-shell taco Supremes from Taco Bell and thirty Big Macs in the span of twenty minutes.

Others included Lance Alvers, a young man who could telekinetically cause earthquakes and tear things apart, Quentin Quire – Kid Omega, and John Allerdyce – Pyro, who controlled pyrokinesis.

Currently, as Wanda was deciding what to watch on television, Freddy was in the process of shoving four Chick-fil-a chicken delux sandwiches, two medium waffle fries and two large chocolate milk shakes down his throat, collapsing down and breaking the chair that he was sitting on. That didn't mean he was done, though. He still had ten McDonald's McChickens, twenty McNuggets, and an M&M McFlurry to go. How he could eat all that crap, nobody understood whatsoever. Pietro was in the process of eating chicken lo-mien from a local Panda Express. However, they were still missing a couple of their members. They were missing Victor Creed – Sabretooth, who came and went as he pleased and often ran off. Their other member that they were missing was Mystique – Raven Darkholm, who could shape-shift into anyone, which made her a deadly force that you did not want to reckon with. However, Raven had said that she was going away for a little getaway with her girlfriend, Destiny, so, who knew when she was getting back?

Wanda let out a sigh. She was hoping that her father would be able to pull through with something and give them some better living conditions soon; because there was no way that they could keep living like this. Tying her hair up into a ponytail, Wanda got up off the sofa to get some air. She took a deep breath as she breathed in the crisp air outside. The wind ruffled her brown hair gently as she tried to collect her thoughts by writing a diary entry.

 _Diary Entry 18,_

 _As most would know, living in a world that hates and fears you is something that will never be easy. However, I'd say that that is an understatement. Considering the fact that anti-mutant sentiment is on the rise, it's a fight for survival at this point._

 _The other day, Father had caused quite the scene at Tony Stark's presentation of his "Jericho" missiles, and let me tell you, that probably had sent quite the message to those across the U.S. If that's not a warning message, I don't know what is. Father's obsession with ending humanity had truly started back when Pietro and I's mother had gotten killed in front of us and him. Sure, I was only a little girl at the time, but, I remember it clear as day, almost as clearly as the day that the Maximoffs took me and my brother in, enhancing our genetics to make our powers come sooner than normal. Having an ability to manipulate probability has got more advantages than you think. I can so easily take down an entire building by just simply snapping my fingers. My hex bolts and telekinesis make me a force to be reckoned with. Father made it clear that humanity should fear us, especially with someone like me who has so much potential for her powers to grow on a scale like no other. Truth be told, it's the truth. I'm a time bomb when I am in control._

 _Father keeps saying he and Mystique have got big plans for the Brotherhood in effort to send Senator Edward Kelly a message from us, gift-wrapped. What he's planning on having us do, I have got no idea, but, knowing Father, it's going to be quite the shocker for Edward Kelly._

Wanda finished writing in her diary, closing the journal up just as she heard the door to the Brotherhood house open. She could hear Mystique, and based on the sound, Raven wasn't in a good mood; however, there was also something in her tone . . . excitement?

"Hi, Raven," said Wanda as she came into the living room. Mystique was in her human form – blonde and blue-eyed and looking even more like Rebecca Romijn than usual. Standing at Raven's side was a teen girl, who looked younger than Wanda by a couple years. The girl had long dark hair which had a streak of white on her bangs, striking green eyes and was wearing a dark green hooded jacket, her hands buried in her jacket pockets. "Who is this? Another new member, perhaps?" Wanda was just happy that finally, there was going to be another girl for her to talk to than just Mystique.

"Yes, Wanda. This is Anna-Marie. I found her just two nights ago down in Mississippi," Raven explained with a smile on her face. "I felt that her mutant powers would make her a rather useful addition to the team."

"So, Anna-Marie, what are your powers?" asked Pietro as he got up off the couch.

"Ah-Ah guess Ah'll have to show you," said the teen in a thick, Southern accent.

"Yes, how about we give them a demonstration, dear?" Raven asked.

Anna-Marie reached over with a bared hand and proceeded to touch John – Pyro, and instantly, Pyro passed out on the ground, but, Anna-Marie seemed to have gained his powers just by touching him. Flames danced off her hands.

"Holy shit! She's rather . . . _rogue,_ " said Toad in fascination.

"She can additionally steal people's memories by touching them as well. Perhaps, we can use her. There's potential for her. Her training shall start soon, and we will use her out in the field when the time comes," Raven said proudly, resting a hand on the teen girl's shoulder. She looked proud of her accomplishment of having found another recruit for the Brotherhood. Their ranks were growing, which would further help send the message that they wanted to send to Senator Edward Kelly. "But, tonight, Anna-Marie will be stepping aside . . . we have an announcement to make so Senator Kelly gets the message loud and clear. After tonight, believe me, he will."

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Rec Room**

That evening, Scott, Jean, Warren, Candy and Bobby were sitting on the sofas in the rec room. Their first week of living together had gone by smoother than expected. Aside from being awoken by the occasional nightmare, Bobby, Scott and Jean found that they were adjusting to their new lives fairly well. Bobby was leaned on the couch, creating small little sculptures out of ice using his powers. Scott was softly strumming at an acoustic guitar, starting to teach himself how to play, something that he had wanted to do for a long time coming. However, Warren was keeping the news on, wanting to pay attention. He had his arm around Candy. Just as he was about to switch it to Netflix so that they could all watch a movie, something caught his eye.

On the news, the image of Magneto's Brotherhood causing a ruckus in New York City made Warren's stomach turn slightly. The Brotherhood were flipping police cars over and causing a riot in the middle of the city. Blob was causing a great deal of damage by grabbing two police cars at once and throwing them down into a large hole in the ground that Avalanche was creating with the help of Wanda Maximoff.

"Oh shit!" Warren yelled. "Great, this is just great! Brilliant . . . just . . . magnificent!"

Scott, Jean and Bobby turned their attention to the news, their eyes widening at the sight.

"Wait, that's the Brotherhood?" asked Scott.

"Yeah, Slim. Let me tell you, after what the Blob did to my wings; I was hoping to not have to deal with them again!" Warren said shuddering as the sight of Quentin Quire – Kid Omega, telepathically manipulating the police into fist-fighting each other came into view. Kid Omega's purple hair stuck out like a sore thumb. Warren's jaw tightened at the sight. Wanda was firing hex bolt after hex bolt at several cops. Scott's jaw dropped in shock at the amount of damage that the Brotherhood was causing. That was the moment Pietro Maximoff made his presence known, a cocky, self-absorbed smirk on his face. The smug look on his face made him look so arrogant that Scott nearly threw up . . . there was nothing he hated more than a guy who was a complete show-off.

" _Tonight we send Senator Kelly a little message from the Brotherhood!"_ Pietro was saying on the video footage. _"There's no stopping the mutants! And we're coming for him next!"_

Warren groaned. "Great, this is just great. More problems and more headaches for us," he said.

"Are we going to do something about it?" asked Bobby.

"We do not even know where he's going to hit the senator," said Warren.

"But, Senator Kelly, he's against mutants. Why do we protect him?" asked Jean.

"Because, Jean, trust me when I say that saving a man who hates you, that's exactly what Professor Xavier would want of us. He'd want us to be the bigger people and he'd want us to take the high road," Warren explained. "That's what makes us different from Magneto and his followers. Some of those people they attacked out there? They might not even be anti-mutant to begin with. They of all people do not deserve this."

"You've got a good point there, Warren," Scott said in agreement as he continued to strum at his guitar.

"We should follow this closely; news, radio, social media, everything. I can almost guarantee you the next time they hit, it will show up on Twitter," said Warren.

Bobby, Scott and Jean shared a look with each other. Sure, they experienced the dark, prejudice sides of humanity with all that they had gone through, but, that didn't mean that they blamed all human beings for all of the problems in their lives and everything that went wrong. In fact, Tony Stark, Pepper Potts and Happy Hogan were some of the most decent human beings that they had met. Moira MacTaggart had treated Scott and Jean's wounds and gave Scott his ruby quartz glasses despite the fact that she didn't have to. Ultimately, they knew what the right thing was, and they knew that the Brotherhood needed to be stopped before they caused even more damage than just a few police cars and injured policemen.

* * *

 **Up next: Rogue Recruit**


	10. Issue 10: Rogue Recruit Part 1

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier struggles to fight for peace and to secure the freedom of mutants everywhere. Meanwhile, his old friend, Magneto, has formed the group known as the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, a team that stands for anarchy and extremism. Additionally to having his two children, Wanda and Pietro as part of the team, his shape-shifting recruiter, Raven "Mystique" Darkholm has brought in the newest recruit named Anna-Marie D'Ancanto, a Southern mutant with ability to siphon the energy and power out of anyone that she touches._

* * *

 **Issue 10: Rogue Recruit Part 1**

 **Biloxi, Mississippi – Four Days Ago**

The sounds of loud dance music and screaming, drunken, partying teens filled the beaches of Biloxi, the waves of the Gulf Coast crashing onto the shores. Parties like this were almost common for students of Kinberg Regional High School, so when sixteen-year-old junior Anna-Marie D'Ancanto found out she had been invited, it was an invitation she could hardly refuse at all.

Wearing her signature green hooded jacket over a black t-shirt with a pair of ripped jeans, Anna-Marie breathed in the smell of salt water that filled the environment. Her long, dark hair was tied back in a ponytail as she sipped on a plastic cup of Angry Orchard Rosé hard cider, taking in the refreshing taste of the wine cooler. She found herself socializing herself with her usual group of girlfriends, which consisted of the rebellious kids in her grade. Growing up having a bad relationship with her father, Owen, Anna-Marie found it easier to rebel against him rather than walk in the straight line he had wanted her to live in. Her green eyes looked up from her Instagram account to meet the image of her crush, Cody Robbins, the star of the school's football team. He was older than her by a year and was a senior, and was considered to be one of the most popular boys in the grade above her. He and Anna-Marie had a very obvious connection between one another that was if he wasn't blinded by cheerleaders and the girls' soccer team, then he would take time to realize that.

Anna-Marie found herself glancing at Cody . . . his sandy hair, his light brown eyes, his perfectly toned body . . . he looked like a model that could be walking the runway for New York Fashion Week.

"Anna-Marie . . . sugah!" a voice called out to her. Her best friend, Risty Wilde, was snapping her fingers in front of her face.

Rogue snapped out of her day dream session of staring at Cody to bring her attention to Risty. "Yeah, Risty?" she asked.

"Anna-Marie, you've been crushin' on Cody Robbins for _months,_ sugah! Now's your chance, gal!" Risty pointed out to her.

"Risty, you know Ah can't," said Anna-Marie with a smile, despite the fact that she was the biggest flirt out of everyone in her junior class.

"C'mon you're the most flirtatious outta of all of us! Just go up to him and make you're move! He invited ya to this party for a reason and he gets red around the ears whenever he speaks to you. So, he obviously must love you!" Risty said with an enthused grin on her face, brushing her layered black hair out of her icy blue eyes. "So just do it!

"Okay, alright, alright, Risty! God, you're so embarrassing!" Anna-Marie said with a roll of her eyes as Cody came over to her, a smile on his face.

"Hey, Anna-Marie, you wanna dance?" Cody offered her.

Anna-Marie nodded, grinning widely at her crush as Cody took her by the arm. The song "Hit the Floor" by Linkin Park came over the speakers and blared loudly. The two proceeded to get close to each other, Anna-Marie's heart melting as Cody's lips came closer and closer to her. Lord, how she just wanted to kiss him right then and there.

Then, that was the moment it happened. Anna-Marie, the rebellious, tough black sheep of her family found her heart softening as Cody leaned in closer to her. She stood on her toes and pressed the lightest of a kiss against Cody's lips. However, that was when she felt something strange coming over her . . . it was like a surge coming over her. Opening her eyes, they widened as she noticed something was off with Cody. He seemed to be suffocating and his skin was growing paler and paler. Bright blue veins seemed to be sticking out on the boy's skin as Anna-Marie broke off of him. It was almost as though her kissing him had sucked the strength right out of Cody's body. She felt nothing but shock coming over her as all of the party-goers surrounded her, pointing and whispering.

"Oh mah God . . . she's a mutie!" someone yelled.

"What did you _do_ to him?" shouted one of Cody's friends.

Anna-Marie felt her eyes starting to sting as she felt another one of Cody's friends grabbing the exposed skin of her hand, which led to him weakening as well. Anna-Marie just screamed in horror, unable to contain her fear knowing what she was . . .

* * *

 **The Brotherhood House – Present Day**

Anna-Marie found herself sitting on her bed in the Brotherhood House, listening to the radio. Apparently, Pietro had caused quite the scene in New York City. The young woman did not know exactly what these people were going to have her do, but, she did know at this point she was so desperate for anything, that she'd do anything to survive. It was a matter of survival for her at this point . . . she had no other place to go, and that woman, Raven, had been kind enough to offer her a meal and a place to stay. Though Anna-Marie didn't know exactly how long she was going to be sticking around these people known as the Brotherhood of Mutants.

After having escaped from the horrific party she had been invited to days ago, Anna-Marie had resulted to just running away. She knew that her father would not take her being a mutant too kindly. So, she had just resulted to sleeping outside a train station in Biloxi, covering herself with a few newspapers when Raven found her and offered to take her in as her ward.

The sixteen-year-old high school junior took in her surroundings of her new living environment. The house was filthy and it clearly could use improvements and upgrades, but still, now it was home. Anna-Marie found herself wearing gloves that Raven had given to her to cover herself with. She was still wearing the same clothes she had worn to that horrendous beach party that had ended horribly. Worst of all, she could still feel Cody inside her head, as though she had his memories and he was screaming at her inside her mind. Tears filled Anna-Marie's eyes as she thought about Cody and the fact that back in Biloxi, she had been referred to as a "mutie" and a "freak" by her peers, including Risty. She hung her head low, feeling the shame and sickness sinking in.

That was the moment she could hear the Brotherhood returning from having wreaked havoc in the city. She could hear the kindly woman known as Raven entering her room.

"Anna-Marie, how are you doing, child?" Raven asked her.

Anna-Marie just shook her head. "Ah-Ah don't know. Ah just . . . why do mah powers feel like such a burden . . .?"

"They always feel like a burden at first, Anna-Marie," Raven whispered as she sat beside the confused, saddened teen. "But, I promise you, these powers that you have are special gifts, young one. I can teach you how to use them. There's potential with you, dear child. You just do not know how much potential you have. You can be so glorious; so powerful, when mutants are finally free. You won't have to any longer deal with being hated; with being treated as though your powers are a curse to mankind."

"Can . . . Can ya help meh?" Rogue asked.

"Yes, darling child. Yes I can. Training is in order. I can show you how you can use your powers to your full advantage; how you can become better than great," Raven whispered. "Now, Anna-Marie, I believe your codename in the Brotherhood shall be . . . _Rogue._ "

Anna-Marie nodded. "Yeah," she whispered.

"We shall begin your training fairly soon. When we are ready for you to be out there, we will for sure let you know. You will know when the time comes," Raven assured her gently. "Though, it's coming sooner than you think . . ."

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Tony's Office**

 _Journal Entry 10_

 _Last night was pure proof that there are mutants out there determined to make things worse for us all._

 _When good old Magneto had showed up banging down my door, basically sending me the message that he was going to make my life hell, he had meant it. Now, he is sending his followers, The Brotherhood, to cause even more of a ruckus through New York City. I remember back when that Fred Dukes kid, Blob, had screwed up Warren's wings . . . Warren had spent hours in the med bay with injuries that could only happen to a bird. Well . . . that's a given because the kid is a walking bird, practically._

 _All I know is that the Brotherhood, they mean business now that they are planning on hitting Senator Edward Kelly. But, when they're planning on hitting him, we honestly do not know. But, it is something we should keep an eye on. Mags and his followers only add more fuel to the fire by making Senator Kelly hate mutants even more. If they wanted to give President Norman Osborn one more reason to launch the Sentinels, they just did. All I can say is that I hope and pray that things do not get much worse than they already are. Alpha Flight has a lot more important things to do than just chasing Magneto and his goons around. Carol Danvers and Logan Howlett are in the process of weight-training Scott, Jeannie, Warren and Bobby with the big blue Beast's assistance._

 _Next Friday, I have an award that I have to accept in Las Vegas at Caesar's Palace, and coincidentally, that's the same exact day that my Jericho missiles get distributed to the U.S military. Let's just hope and pray that Magneto doesn't screw that up for me either. I'm also very aware that that is the same day Senator Kelly is having a press conference, though I do not know where exactly it will be. All I know is that that press conference will be the perfect opportunity for Magneto's Brotherhood to attack the Senator . . . that would only encourage for more Sentinels to get built. Great . . . more problems for me . . . oh joy._

Tony closed off his journal entry of that day. After having witnessed the Brotherhood's attack on New York City the previous night, he knew that that wasn't just a message for Senator Kelly. It was also a message that they were sending to him. Those kids in the Brotherhood truly were punks more than anything.

Tony sipped at his second cup of coffee that morning as he read the newspaper. He didn't know why he bothered with the news. It only added more stress onto his middle-aged mind. He sometimes forgot that he was a thirty-five-year-old, but, he truly was in many ways the adult, considering X-Corporation Tower was becoming a home to four teenagers and two young men in the their early twenties, with Bobby being the youngest out of everyone that lived there.

Tony rubbed at his eyes, feeling a migraine coming over him as he drank his coffee. However, that was the moment he heard a knock at the door of his office. He was expecting to see Pepper, but, what he saw instead was Scott.

"Good morning, Mr. Stark. Headache?" Scott asked him.

"Yeah, it's just this whole thing with the Brotherhood is leaving me more stressed than usual. Magneto's building himself an army," Tony said.

"Well, I can think of something that would help that headache ease up. Forge and Hank's Danger Room is officially completed and Logan and Carol will be training us down there in ten minutes," Scott said.

"Yes, that makes me happy, Scott. Glad to hear that." Tony was genuinely glad about that, considering Forge and Hank had been working on that Danger Room for the past few months or so. "I will be down there. I'm very curious to see how this Danger Room works."

Scott nodded with a grin on his face and proceeded to head off to the basement for his morning workout. He was glad that they were having more options for physical training than just the weight room. Once Tony finished his coffee, he proceeded to head down to the Danger Room himself. When he got there, he saw exactly what Forge and Hank's blueprints had looked like for all those months.

The Danger Room took up a good percentage of the basement, meaning that Forge and Hank's workshop would have to be moved upstairs, but, Tony couldn't be more pleased with what he was seeing. The Danger Room was a full-fledged obstacle course, with paintball guns, laser trip beams, sentry guns and holograms. The area that used to be Forge and Hank's workshop got transformed into a control room area. How the big blue Beast and Forge had managed to get the whole Danger Room put together so fast, Tony had no idea, but, he was pleased with it. However, the Cerebro room stayed where it was: towards the back of the basement where it was connected to the war room. Tony knew that this would help with further training Scott, Jean, Bobby and Warren. He looked to see the kids were ready, hungry and eager to get training. Carol Danvers and Logan Howlett stood there in their Wolverine and Ms. Marvel uniforms. The fact that Carol and Logan were on their way to transforming these kids into full-fledged soldiers was something that amazed Tony. Scott and Jean having time in the weight room and eating three meals a day were helping them pack on more weight, and Jean no longer looked like the undernourished, scared, scrawny redhead that Tony had met days ago. In fact, she actually looked a lot more confident, eager to learn. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail to make it more manageable for her, and Scott had switched out his ruby quartz sunglasses for his visor with the different settings on it which would allow him to fire his optic blasts efficiently. It would be his first time testing it out, and Scott looked excited to start.

"Alright, I can say this, Beast, Forge, you two did it," Tony said, nodding his approval.

"Yeah, finally, after months of making blueprints of the Danger Room it's finally come together," Forge said, proud of his work.

"Alright, let's get into the control room and see what this room can do," said Hank as he, Tony, Forge and Professor Xavier went into the control room to start the simulation. Hank put the simulation on the beginners setting, and it was on.

The sentry guns immediately started to fire, Carol and Logan taking charge as Warren flew up and into the air, dodging the paintballs that were firing his way at his wings. Scott fired at the sentry guns with perfect precision and aim, coloring Carol impressed. Scott Summers truly was Christopher Summers' son. He carried himself like a soldier and it was almost as though he just knew what it was that he was doing. It was like an instinct to him.

Jean was already starting to get a handle on her powers after at least three telekinetic training sessions with the professor a day, to the point where she could use her telekinesis to creating shielding around herself and tear things apart. She used her telekinetic shielding to block the paintballs that were aiming at her concentrating her mind and sending out telepathic commands to Bobby so that he could freeze the guns that were aiming at him. The way that they were all working together was one of a tag team. And Logan and Carol couldn't be more pleased as they watched. These kids truly were filled with so much potential to use their powers for something, and Logan and Carol felt honored to be the ones to train them.

Scott, Jean, Warren and Bobby continued with working together, Warren dodging paintball after paintball. After having faced a humiliating defeat by the Blob on the Pace University campus months back, Warren was determined to not allow anything damage his wings ever again. And so far, Warren was doing well in the Danger Room, managing to even keep up with Scott.

Finally, once the simulation ended, Scott, Jean, Warren and Bobby were sharing a round of high-fives with each other, celebrating their first victory in a Danger Room session and having actually worked as a team. Logan and Carol smiled at the sight of it . . . kids just being kids.

"Alright, everyone, that's good for today," Tony announced through the speaker.

"At least we know now that this room will come useful," said Logan. "Furball, you've done it again."

Bobby chuckled at Logan's comment of calling Beast a "furball", but, Hank didn't seem the least bit amused. He let out a low growl.

"If you wanna talk about furballs, Logan, you should meet Rahne Sinclair, Moira's adoptive daughter. The kid can turn herself into a werewolf," said Forge as he looked around at the destroyed Danger Room. "Wait, wait a minute . . . I just realized something. You guys just tore this place apart. That means extra work for me, needing to put it back together."

"Don't tell me you're complaining about that Forge. You essentially made this to be our own personal playground," pointed out Warren.

"Yeah, a playground that makes that scene from that movie with Famke Janssen's character losing her shit look like a trip to Disneyworld," quipped Jean.

"Wait, you saw that movie?" asked Scott.

"Yes, and it sucked," Jean said. "And that was the third movie in a trilogy."

"Well, at least we can all agree that the third movie is always the worst," Scott said as he and his friends made their way out of the basement.

"Not all the third movies; that one movie Sophie Turner did was really good. Rotten Tomatoes never knows what they're talking about anyway," Bobby said.

"Good point," Jean said in agreement. "Besides, I call the showers first!"

"Don't use up all the hot water, Jeannie," Warren said. "I've got classes and after that I've got a date with Candy tonight!"

"Well, when's the wedding, War?" asked Scott.

"Don't know yet; I haven't even proposed to Candy yet, but, that might change tonight. I got the ring at least a month ago, I'm just waiting for the right moment," Warren said.

"Well, you don't want to wait too long, buddy, otherwise it'll be one day too late," Scott said.

"What bumper sticker did you get that quote off of?" Warren asked Scott.

"Believe it or not it's actually lyrics to a song by the band Skillet," Scott said a grin on his face.

"Wow, who knew that our fearless leader with a stick up his ass is soft?" Warren joked.

Scott elbowed him in the chest. "Shut up!" He rolled his eyes, laughing.

* * *

 **Worthington Industries – Warren Worthington, Jr.'s Office**

Worthington Industries was always a very high-stress place to work, which was to be expected when it would be considered one of the top companies in the world.

For Warren Worthington, Jr. and Katherine Worthington, this company was their whole life. However, they also knew that they were not going to be alive forever to continue the family business, which was part of why they had groomed their one and only son, Warren Worthington III, to one day take over the company. However, their son was also a mutant, something that Warren Jr. was disgraced to have learned.

When Warren III had told his father that he was a mutant – or more like Warren Jr. had walked in on his son attempting to cut his wings off of his back with a knife at the age of sixteen, Warren Jr. had decided to take it upon him to work with Worthington Pharmaceuticals to develop a cure for mutant powers. He would never know if they were successful with their Legacy Cure, because his son had refused to take the cure. As a result, Warren Jr. kicked his son out of the house and cut him off from the family business. Now, Warren Worthington, Jr.'s soul goal was to distribute the cure as an option for mutants that wanted it. And part of his goal would be completed through supporting Senator Edward Kelly in his presidential campaign. He was the main financial backer behind Senator Kelly's campaign, and he could not afford to have his son screw that up for him by showing off his powers to the whole entire world.

As Warren Jr. proceeded to start leaving his office so that he could head to Worthington Pharmaceuticals to check on the progress of the Legacy Cure before going home for the evening, that was the moment he heard a crash in his big, office window that gave him a full view of New York. He turned his head only to see the group of mutants known as the "Brotherhood" there in his office. His jaw dropped open in shock before trying to rush for the phone lines to call for security, though Quicksilver beat him to the punch, standing in front of the phone and having him cornered as Wanda disabled the phone line.

"Nice work, sis," Quicksilver said in a cocky voice.

"What do you want?" Warren Jr. asked.

"We want your ear. We want Senator Kelly's itinerary for next week," said Mystique as she stepped around with Rogue, who was still wearing her dark green jacket and gloves.

"No . . . no, I won't give you anything!" Warren Jr. shouted.

"Yes, you will, not that you have too many choices," Mystique said, her blue skin standing out more than usual as she took another step forward. Warren Jr. found himself backing up right into Avalanche and Toad, who held him in place, Toad using his extra-long tongue to wrap around his wrist while Avalanche had him by the shoulders tightly.

"LET ME GO, YOU FREAKS!" shouted Warren Jr., glowering at them with a look of such hatred and disgust, but, Mystique didn't even flinch. She just gave him a cold, emotionless glare.

"You're in no position to be giving us orders, Warren Jr.," Mystique said in a voice that was disturbingly calm. She turned to Rogue, who was still standing at her side, loyal to the woman who had offered to take her in. "Now, Rogue," she said, her yellow eyes flashing over Warren Jr.

Rogue just simply took off one of her gloves and walked over, despite the fact that she was hesitant to do this. Was this right? She didn't know, but she would do what she had to do, because she owed Mystique. Scarlet Witch gave her a pointed look, pushing the girl forward a little more using her hexing powers. Everyone in the Brotherhood was looking to her to do what she had to do. When Raven had said that her time to use her powers would come soon, she had definitely meant sooner than Rogue could anticipate. Rogue finally threw her hesitation out the window, and pressed her hand to Warren Jr.'s forehead. She could feel his energy surging into her, as well as his memories of Senator Kelly's itinerary. Rogue instantly let go as she saw the older man pass out on the floor.

"Ah've got it," she whispered.

"Good job, Rouge . . . really good job," Raven praised with a smile on her face. Rogue could feel Avalanche and Pyro patting her shoulders in the form of congratulations. Rogue was already on her way to becoming a full-fledged member of the Brotherhood, and this was just only her first mission, on the first day at that, too.

* * *

 **Up next: Rogue Recruit Part 2**

 **We are officially at the halfway point, muties, meaning there are only ten more issues left! Be sure to review, follow and favorite for more issues to come! Excelsior!-**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


	11. Issue 11: Rogue Recruit Part 2

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is proving to make things all the more difficult for Professor Charles Xavier, who has a vision of humans and mutants living together in peace and harmony._

 _Recently, the Brotherhood's shape-shifting co-leader, Mystique, has adopted Anna-Marie D'Ancanto, a young mutant from the south with ability to siphon the energy and memory of anyone that she touches. Unfortunately, Anna-Marie's powers manifested after having kissed her very first crush, a boy named Cody Robbins. Ostracized by her peers and unaccepted by her father, the teenager ran away from home. She was found by Mystique who offered to adopt her as her own. As part of her training to become a member of the Brotherhood, Anna-Marie absorbed the memories of Warren Worthington, Jr. out of effort to aid the Brotherhood in taking down presidential-hopeful Senator Edward Kelly._

* * *

 **Issue 11: Rogue Recruit Part 2**

 **The Chart House Restaurant – Weehawken, New Jersey**

For Warren Worthington III and Candy Southern, they both didn't have too much time to have a night off due to them being college seniors at Pace University. However, their night off was Friday nights, which meant every Friday night going out to the Chart House in Weehawken, New Jersey, where they had the best steak and seafood in the city. Warren decided that that night was the ideal night to propose to Candy. He'd had the ring for a good month, and after talking with Scott earlier, he decided that he didn't want to waste one more second with his girlfriend.

"So, War, you told me that your first Danger Room session was a success," Candy said with a smile.

"Yeah, I don't think it can get much better than that," Warren said with a smile in his girlfriend's direction as he took her hand. He had the ring in his jacket pocket. Tonight was the night.

"Well, that's one thing to celebrate tonight. And considering the fact that we graduate in December," Candy added.

"Yeah, and that means Tony Stark will be entrusting you and me as the CFOs, that's something I can say I never thought would happen. I wish that my parents could be as proud," Warren said.

Candy nodded; however, she didn't want them to spoil their Friday night dinner due to talking about how Warren's family had tossed him out. Candy proceeded to take a bite of her stuffed flounder before sipping her white wine.

"So, War, aside from us being hired by Tony Stark to be the CFOs of X-Corporation, what other plans are we making, for us, for our future?" Candy asked him, her blue eyes meeting Warren's.

"Well, Candy, I can say, that no matter what the future holds for the two of us, all I know is that I want that future to be with you," Warren whispered to her softly as he reached into his jacket pocket for the ring that he had brought to propose to Candy with. However, that was the moment his cell phone started to ring. "Sorry; gotta take this, hun."

Warren pulled his phone out and saw that Tony was calling him. "Hey, Tony. It's date night tonight," he said.

" _Yeah, Warren I am sorry to interrupt. I know it's your night off with Candy, but, you gotta get back here to X-Corp right away. This is important,"_ Tony said.

"Mr. Stark, can it wait?" Warren asked.

" _No. It cannot wait, because it concerns your old man,"_ Tony said.

"What is this about my father?" asked Warren, not even attempting to hide the bitterness in his voice.

" _Kid, just get here, alright?"_ Tony asked.

"Okay." Warren hung up the phone, turning to Candy apologetically. Candy gave him an understanding look. Warren then turned to their waiter. "Hey, Jason. Sorry, but, you're gonna have to pack our dinner to go, _again._ "

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Professor Xavier's Office**

For Professor Charles Xavier, he always had had his fears that Magneto and his Brotherhood of Mutants would rise one day in attempt to try and overthrow the human population of the world. However, he did not think that it would be taken this far, but that did not mean he was surprised in the least.

He sat in his office with Tony and Pepper, awaiting Warren's arrival with Candy. Scott, Jean, Bobby and Hank were also present. Xavier hadn't told them much; all they knew was that Warren had to be present to hear the news of what had happened. Before they knew it, Warren and Candy were in Xavier's office, Candy in Warren's arms before he set her down.

"Why do I feel like I just got called into the principal's office?" Warren asked.

"Warren, this is serious. This is a problem. It's Magneto's Brotherhood. Their ranks, as you know, are growing in numbers and followers, and they seem to have a mutant with them who can siphon others' memories and energy. I was monitoring them through Cerebro because I was worried that something like this would happen. They broke into Worthington Industries to force information out of your father regarding Senator Kelly's itinerary for his press conference next week," Xavier said.

"Great, something I was very well hoping not to be involved with. What do you want me to do?" Warren asked, not thrilled about where this conversation was headed.

"We need you to see if you can contact your father somehow and find out where Senator Kelly is having that press conference. If the Brotherhood is going to be there, we will need to do something about it," said Tony.

Warren burst out laughing, needing to wipe a tear from his eye. "Ha, ha, ha . . . please tell me you're joking Mr. Stark!" he barked, furious at the thought of needing to confront his father after years of not speaking to him. "The last words my father said to me were, "You're dead to me." So therefor, that's not going to happen."

"Warren, we know your father is the last person you'd ever want to see or speak with, but, you're going to have to do this, somehow. You need to find a way to do this," Hank said.

"No, Hank, my answer is _no!_ Okay? My father betrayed his own blood and threw me out on the streets like I was garbage to him! If the professor didn't find me, I would have been dead, because I was an arrogant, idiotic spoiled frigging brat. There! I can admit to what I was, and guess what? I own it!" Warren spat.

"Come on, War!" Bobby said. "You cannot hate your parents for the rest of your life. Trust me when I say that, because my parents probably hate me now too because of my mutation!"

"Bobby –!" Warren started to say.

"Warren, take this from somebody who doesn't have parents," Jean said. "Okay? Scott and I's mom and dad are dead! We will never see them ever again. You however, have a chance to prove to your parents that they are wrong about your mutation and that you're trying to use your powers to do good!"

"Jean's right, War," Candy pointed out.

"Guys, it's not that simple, and you know it. You know my family history, I told you and Scott that from the day I first met you, Jean," Warren said. "My parents, they failed me . . . they _despise_ who I am and what I am and they tried getting me to change for the sake of being part of the family business. As far as I know, I do not want a relationship with them. They're scum on the bottom of my shoe."

"Warren," said Jean. "I think it's time that you try and learn to forgive a little bit here."

"Jean's right, Warren," said Professor Xavier. "Forgiveness can go a long way and it's easier to do that than hold grudges."

"Exactly, kid," Tony stated. "War, you shouldn't follow by my example of hating your old man because he threw you out. Be better than me."

"Why should I? Tony, you can't even forgive your own father, and he's dead!" Warren said in a harsh tone.

"So how's about you try forgiving before it's too late?" Pepper suggested to him.

Warren swallowed, taking in the words of his new friends and his mentors. They honestly did make a point when they told him that he should try to forgive a little bit and let that weight get lifted off of his chest. He looked over at Candy, who gave him a look of pleading as she grabbed hold of his hand, giving it a squeeze to show her moral support.

"Alright. I-I can try, but, I cannot make any promises," Warren said. "I can guarantee you my dad won't be willing to talk to me."

"It won't hurt to try at all," Scott said.

* * *

 **Outside Worthington Industries Factory – Downtown Newark, New Jersey**

The Brotherhood found they were outside a factory that was owned by Worthington Industries, the exact place that they were going to hit next week when Senator Kelly had his press conference.

"Are you sure that this is the place, Rogue?" asked Mystique.

"Positive," Rogue said with a nod. "Ah'm sure of it. It's a factory owned by Worthington Industries. Ah've had a taste of what Worthington Jr.'s memories of Senator Kelly are. He's up that man's ass. There's no way that this won't be where he'll be holding his press conference."

"Alright, so this is how it's going to go down. We hit Senator Kelly next Friday at the press conference, which is taking place at twelve noon. Rogue, you will be staying behind at the Brotherhood house. The rest of us can handle it ourselves just fine," said Mystique.

"Ya mean you don't need meh to –?" asked Rogue.

"No, not yet . . . you're not ready to be out in the field just yet. This was just your first taste at being on a mission. This isn't your first mission; this is just your first training on how to control your powers. Your time one day will come," said Wanda with a small smile in Anna-Marie's direction. She slung an arm around the Southern bell's shoulders to reassure the girl that her time will come.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Warren's Room**

Warren found himself on his cell phone for over an hour, trying to contact his father. But, just like he expected, his parents were not picking up the phone . . . neither were any of the butlers or maids that lived at the Worthington mansion. Warren huffed and puffed, trying to call again and again. He was so furious that his father was still the pig-headed jackass he was all those years ago. It made him sick to his stomach the more he thought about it. He was sick of this whole thing, sick of what his father was . . . he couldn't tolerate it for more than a minute.

"Dad, look, it's me. It's Warren. Listen, I know you do not want to speak to me or see me . . . you made that very clear when you tossed me out. But, this is important! The Brotherhood of Mutants they're planning to attack Senator Kelly at the press conference next week we do not know where he's having the press conference but if we do not find out, he's going to be in danger and it'll just get worse and worse for mutants everywhere! Pick up, God dammit you mother fletcher!" Warren shouted into the phone as he heard Scott, Jean, Bobby and Hank outside his room.

"Any luck?" Jean asked him.

"No. It's just like I expected. My dad's too pig-headed to try and do the right thing. He's got his head up his ass!" Warren said, exasperated as he shook his head. "He's still the same pig-headed asshole he was all those years ago when he threw me away! He'll never change! I mean, the man's pushing fifty years old, and they say when a person reaches that age they're most likely not going to change their ways."

"Try again," pleaded Bobby.

"How many times do I have to try before I realize that my mother and father aren't going to give a shit?" asked Warren. "For all I know, they're probably enjoying this right now; they _like_ the idea of things getting worse for mutants . . . they're disgusting!"

"Warren, you can't just roll over and play dead!" said Scott.

"I know that, Slim!" Warren ran his hand over his face and through his hair, shaking his head. "It's just . . ."

"Yeah, yeah, I know; it's frustrating the shit out of you. You're projecting on a thousand loud speakers," Jean told him bluntly.

"Jeannie –" Warren said.

"Never give up on something that you can't go a day without thinking about," Hank said. "Winston Churchill . . ."

"Hank, enough with the philosophy lessons please!" Warren begged. "You're a walking fortune cookie! Has anybody told you that before?!"

"Look, we're just saying that you shouldn't just give up this easily," Jean pointed out to him.

"And if I do, you're more than welcome to use me as a whipping post," Warren said.

"Well, if you cannot reach your parents at home, what else can we do?" asked Bobby.

"How's about paying them a visit at work?" suggested Scott.

"No fucking way, Scottie. It ain't happening," Warren cried. "It will be a cold day in hell the day I walk into Worthington Industries ever again!"

"Well you have to!" Scott declared. "So suck it up, and man up!"

Warren stood there, taking in Scott's words. The fact that Scott was standing his ground and not taking Warren's self-pity was something that a thousand words couldn't describe. He breathed out a sigh. He knew that if he showed up at Worthington Industries, he'd most likely get thrown out, but, he knew that at this point, they didn't have too much of a choice.

"Alright, I'll-I'll see what I can do. I can almost guarantee you that I won't be welcome back to my parents' company ever again, but, I will try. I just . . . I can't this weekend. I've got tests to study for, and throughout next week, I've got school and I've also got training. It'll be tough, but I'll try," Warren said, giving in. He knew that his friends were right . . . he had to give in and admit that, because all he could do at this point was surrender.

* * *

 **Outside Senator Edward Kelly's House – Westchester, New York**

After the Brotherhood of Mutants had attacked Worthington Industries and went to the place where Senator Kelly was going to be holding his press conference, they just knew that they were not done yet. They now found themselves outside the senator's home in Westchester County, New York. As far as they knew, he was staying in a hotel somewhere for the weekend with his family, so therefor, the timing was perfect. However, Quicksilver couldn't resist running inside to check.

"Nobody's home," he said.

Mystique stayed at Rogue's side as she nodded for Scarlet Witch to wreak havoc on the senator's home, but she also knew that this was the opportunity to train Rogue on how she could absorb mutants' powers in addition to their energy and memories. It was vital, because Mystique kept telling the young mutant that before she knew it, the "most important mission of her life" would be coming. And Rogue, being the scared, naïve teen that she was, was going along with it, because she felt as though she owed Mystique for taking her in and offering her a place in a group that she could belong in.

Wanda proceeded to use her powers of manipulating probability and telekinesis to fire several hex bolts towards Senator Kelly's estate, managing to knock down several bits and pieces of the house, such as windows and bricks. Mystique then nodded for Anna-Marie to absorb Avalanche, and then Pyro. Rogue took her gloves off and proceeded to absorb Lance and John, and Mystique proceeded to guide her.

"Now, Rogue, concentrate everything that you have, my child," Raven whispered in a deathly calm voice.

"Are ya sure about this? Ah-Ah mean this _is_ somebody's house," said Anna-Marie.

"Rogue, when the Brotherhood leaves a message, we like to make sure that it's loud and clear. Imagine what Senator Kelly would do to our homes; to _us_ if he's elected as president! We're already fucked with President Osborn in office!" Wanda pointed out.

"Seriously Rogue, you better not be flaking out now," Toad said to her.

Despite her hesitation, Rogue proceeded to take some control and use Avalanche's telekinesis to tear apart the huge house before her, and then using Pyro's pyrokinesis to set the house ablaze. Blob then proceeded to run headfirst into the house, breaking it down further by using his overly-large body size to his advantage. Toad however just stood off to the sidelines with Raven, Pietro and Kid Omega, grinning in amazement. That was the moment Pietro proceeded to step forward to congratulate Rogue on her success, a wide smile on his face as he looked at Anna-Marie in pride.

"Congratulations, Rogue. You managed to successfully conquer your powers on the first day, and prove your loyalty to the Brotherhood. Well done," he said, leaning a hand on the younger girl's shoulder.

Rogue just smiled in return towards Pietro; however, she was still debating internally whether or not she was actually doing the right thing in the first place.

* * *

 **Up next: Striking Senator Kelly**

 **A/N: Also, on my blog, MakeupGeek Comics, I uploaded an official character biography page for the main characters of Peace in Our Time. If you wish to go over there, feel free to do so. Again, be sure to follow, favorite and REVIEW for more. Reviews are much so needed for this series to prosper; it only takes one minute of your time, so please review! Excelsior!**


	12. Issue 12: Striking Senator Kelly Part 1

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants proves to be an adversary for Professor Charles Xavier, who is making the attempt at fighting for a peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants. Recently, the Brotherhood has recruited their newest member, Anna-Marie D'Ancanto, a young woman who can siphon the energy from anybody that she touches. After using her to gather information out of Warren Worthington III's father and destroying Senator Edward Kelly's home, the Brotherhood plans to take one more step in their plans to prove that mutants should reign Supreme._

 _The Brotherhood plans to attack Senator Kelly at a press conference being held in a factory owned by Worthington Industries. As the Brotherhood plots this, Warren Worthington III struggles to reach out to his estranged father to warn him of the attack against the senator and presidential-hopeful._

* * *

 **Issue 12: Striking Senator Kelly Part 1**

 **X-Corporation Tower – Warren's Room**

 _Journal Entry 45_

 _I can officially say that my father is the most pig-headed, stubborn, moronic asshole I've ever known in a lifetime. This whole week leading up to Senator Kelly's press conference, I honestly feel as though someone had just tossed me into a sewer, because here I am trying to find some way to help make sure that this anti-mutant senator is safe, and nobody's being the least bit helpful or taking into consideration that I could be helping._

 _Am I surprised? No, I'm not. My father and mother being anti-mutant . . . it has always put a distance between us. I remember the day that my mutation had manifested. I had been so ashamed, so afraid of what I was becoming due to who my parents were, that I had attempted at harming myself by grabbing a steak knife to actually cut my wings off my back at just the age of sixteen. My parents had walked in on me doing that, and that was what sparked them to try and create the mutant cure. However, I soon came to the realization that having wings was a gift, and I'd decided to take a test flight at four o'clock in the morning. It lit a fire in me and made me realize I did not want to get rid of my mutation. After learning that my parents wanted to use me as their first guinea pig test subject, I was just so disgusted with the both of them. I could hardly believe that my father would want to do something like that. In a lot of ways, I also know part of the reason why my family and I are so strained. It is because for so many years when I was a child, my parents would constantly praise me as their 'perfect son' and brag about me to my aunts and uncles and their employees. They put me on a pedestal, and when I lost that 'perfect' image, it was almost as though they were trying to cut me down. Candy noticed it too from the time that we were little kids swimming in the kiddie pool in the backyard of Worthington Manor._

 _When I'd refused to take the cure, my parents had thrown me out of the house. They'd driven me off to a hotel with just enough money to last me two nights there, and a small duffel of clothes. When I'd ran out of money to stay in that hotel, I'd ended up on the streets, however, my arrogance and stupidity at the time got the best of me. It had gotten to a point where one day, a group of thugs had actually tried beating the shit out of me when they'd saw my wings. However, my saving grace had been when a group of bystanders had saw what had happened, and they'd gotten me to a hospital. I'd kept on saying I had no coverage for any medicine, but, it was those kind people who had offered to pay for whatever treatments I'd needed at the time. I'd ended up with four broken ribs, contusions on my arms, a split lip, a concussion, and a fracture or two in my wings. Other than that, I was just fine and dandy. And that night, it was like a gift from God when Professor Xavier and Tony Stark had approached me about being employed by X-Corporation. I had never felt relief like that in my life, especially since Hank is older than me by a year, meaning the two of us got along great._

 _Now, with X-Corporation growing thanks to members like Forge, Scott, Jean and Bobby, I have to say that I have found a new family. Scott and Jean are just awesome and are so much fun to be around. Bobby's the brother I'd never had, but always wanted. But the fact is, they're trying to get me to attempt forgiving my parents. But, it's not easy; when my parents had thrown me out and disowned me, it had hurt. But I also know that Scott and Jean have no parents, and Bobby is probably on the way to being disowned by his own family. Now, with Senator Kelly's press conference on the horizon today at noon, and Mr. Stark accepting an award in Las Vegas early in the morning, the pressure is on. This is considering that we need to save the life of a man who hates and fears us . . . piece of cake . . . no, it's not. But, if my old man doesn't pull his head out of his ass and give me something, then the mutants are fucked._

Warren set his pen and journal aside, running a hand over his face. All week long, he'd failed at contacting his mother and father for any kind of information regarding the press conference. But, at least he was actually trying. Getting up from his desk, he decided to fix himself some food and watch the news, considering Tony was receiving that award that day and it was going to be on at the crack of dawn. After that, they were going to have to worry about the Brotherhood. Warren looked over at Candy, who was sleeping in his bed still. She looked so stunning . . . like an actual angel. Warren walked over to her and kissed her on the forehead gently before making his way into the kitchen to get breakfast before Bobby, Scott and Jean did. That was considering the fact that Bobby was the one with the biggest appetite out of all the inhabitants of X-Corp Tower, and Scott and Jean were still on a weight-gain diet which meant they had to force themselves to eat throughout the day more frequently.

Warren was drinking his coffee as he watched the morning news. He knew that Tony was going to be home in time before Senator Kelly's press conference. Letting out a sigh, he noticed Scott and Jean walking into the kitchen. Over the past couple weeks; they've been on their way to a healthy weight, Jean especially. However, their sleeping issues were still a problem. They both suffered with insomnia which was a result of nightmares. They didn't think people heard them, but Warren heard them loud and clear in the dead of night, screaming in their sleep and waking up sobbing. But he couldn't blame them. In fact, his heart went out to them because after he'd been hospitalized after having gotten attacked by a group of street thugs that had brought nightmares to Warren's sleep too. He didn't tell too many people about that. In fact, Candy was one of the only people that he confided in about that.

"Hey, guys," he said. "In case you're wondering, I still have had no luck reaching my parents. I will have to go to the last resort and actually go to Worthington Industries, because all this right now, is bullshit."

"I agree, it is bullshit, because we do not have parents," Scott pointed out. "So therefor, even if your parents do not make the effort, you should at least try to."

"I know. My situation is bullshit compared to the two of you. You both had it worse than I did," Warren said.

"Considering I had spent my whole entire childhood separated from my siblings due to me being a mental patient, I would give for anything to see them again. It's often a misconception that the Morrison Mental Institution was the first hospital I had been in. No . . . actually, before I got transferred to Morrison, me and my identical twin sister, Madelyne, had been patients at the Mangold Mental Hospital. That one was worse, because we only lasted two weeks in there before we both got transferred to separate hospitals because the staff there had been too afraid to keep us in there. Ever since then, we've been separated," Jean explained as her eyes misted over, remembering her identical twin. "We had this relationship growing up where it was the two of us against the world . . . I loved that, she was like my best friend. And now I don't even know where she is or what's happened to her. I haven't spoken to her in a decade."

"Jean . . ." Warren whispered, having not known that.

Jean swallowed her tears back. "It's fine . . . it's . . . it's been years now," she insisted.

"Still, Jean, you've got a right to be upset," said Scott.

Jean nodded in agreement, and then turned her attention to the news to see Tony on the TV, accepting his Apogee award. She was also aware that that day, the Jericho missiles were scheduled to be given to the army. She turned her head to look at the time. It was 9:30 in the morning . . . only a couple hours left until the Brotherhood hit Senator Kelly. Suddenly, that was when the news coverage switched from Tony to news about Senator Kelly.

" _And in other news, Senator Edward Kelly is getting ready to have his press conference today about his presidential campaign. The press conference will be held in Newark, New Jersey at twelve noon in a factory owned by Worthington Industries. With Warren Worthington, Jr.'s Legacy Cure under development and Cameron Hodge of Hodge International, Obadiah Stane of Stane Enterprises and Bolivar Trask of Trask Industries collaborating to work on the mutant-tracking robots called Sentinels, Senator Edward Kelly is adamant about working with Hodge, Stane and Trask to develop a mutant registration to keep mutants in line."_

Warren shot up from his seat as soon as he saw Cameron Hodge's picture on the news.

"That son of a bitch," he growled angrily as Candy came into the room, wearing his Pace University hooded sweatshirt, a pair of silky sleep shorts from Victoria's Secret, and knee-high socks. When she saw Cameron's photo on the news, she instantly understood where her boyfriend's point of anger was coming from.

"Wait, that's the guy who was your best friend?" Jean asked as she noticed the photo of the blonde young man wearing horn-rimmed glasses.

"He was, until he stabbed me in the back, but this is low, even for him," Warren spat. "I can't believe that that asshole would _do_ something like this! Oh wait, I can!" He was clenching his fists in anger as Bobby entered the room, shocked to see Warren that angry and upset. "And the cherry on top, he's collaborating with two of our biggest competitors! I mean, Stane and Trask? Are you _kidding_ me?!"

"Well, at least we now know where the press conference will be, so maybe, just maybe, we'll be able to stop the Brotherhood in time," said Scott, trying to be reasonable in this situation as Professor Xavier, Forge and Hank walked into the room.

"You all saw the news too?" Jean asked.

"Yes, and as we know, this matter is rather sensitive considering that Magneto's followers are looking to make a scene," Professor Xavier said. "Tony's on his way back here, so hopefully we can formulate a plan and stop the Brotherhood before it's too late."

"It's best that we get Alpha Flight on the phone then," said Hank as he made his way around the phone lines to contact Carol and Logan.

"Yeah, you know they'd want in," said Warren. "But, besides, how are we going to stop the Brotherhood from attacking the senator? It's not like we can just come in there as we please to see the whole thing happen."

"Well . . . truth being told, Tony and I have been working on something together," said Forge. "When he gets back, I'll show you. The two of us have been doing some . . . _side_ _projects_ this past week to further improve the Danger Room."

"Wait, what exactly, Forge?" asked Bobby.

"When Mr. Stark and Pepper get back, you'll see," Forge said as he went to get his morning coffee.

* * *

 **Hotel Indigo Newark Downtown – Senator Kelly's Hotel Room**

For Senator Edward Kelly, being a member of the New York senate seat and a presidential nominee meant that being in the public eye was a given. However, another reason why he was in the public eye was because of his views on mutants.

The anti-mutant senator sat there in his hotel room with his wife, Sharon, and his two children, James and Gabriella as he watched the news coverage of that morning. For most of the morning, it had been covering Tony Stark receiving the Apogee award. Of course, the senator was aware that the genius, billionaire playboy had mutants on his payroll. Hell, the thirty-five-year-old owned a company called X-Corporation, which focused on giving mutants job opportunities. As far as Senator Kelly was concerned, mutants shouldn't even be allowed to have jobs anywhere, because all they did was cause problems. All he had to do was look at Magneto as the prime example of why he was all for a mutant registration. In the past few years, Magneto had done nothing but cause chaos to try and prove that mutants were the superior over humans. It was madmen like that that made Senator Kelly believe in what he believed. As looked over at his wife and his two children, it further motivated him to want to protect them from mutant criminals.

Sharon Kelly walked over to her husband's side and sat beside him, wrapping an arm around his back as she breathed out a deep sigh.

"Edward," Sharon whispered. "You have got to stop watching the news this much."

"I can't stop, Sharon . . . I cannot, and you know why. With this press conference today, I am actually anticipating that the Brotherhood of Mutants is looking for a fight. This is why we must remain vigilante," Edward said.

"Yeah, yeah, I can agree on that," said Sharon softly. "But is this worth it? I mean, do you really want to antagonize them further?"

"Sharon, come on, we cannot just hide in fear; we need to show the Brotherhood that they should just assume they should be under the impression that I should be afraid of them," said Edward as they heard a knocking at the door.

"Senator, the press conference is starting in an hour," said the voice of Warren Worthington, Jr.

"Yes, Mr. Worthington, we should be on the road," Edward said as he got up from where he was sitting with his wife.

"Good luck," Sharon whispered, kissing her husband softly before beckoning him towards the door to meet with Warren Jr. "You know I'll be watching."

"Always," Edward said with a smile.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Rec Room**

Scott, Jean, Warren, Candy and Bobby were in the rec room, waiting for Tony to get back from Las Vegas. They knew for a fact that Beast and Forge were anxious to share something with them, but, they refused to say anything until Tony got back. They just stayed on the couches watching the news quietly. They knew that in an hour from now, the Brotherhood was going to hit Senator Kelly at the press conference which was going to be in a factory that was owned by Worthington Industries in Newark, New Jersey. For Jean, she was nervous about going back there, because while going back to New Jersey should bring back some feelings of comfort, it just brought her more apprehension and nervousness. The last time she'd been there, she was leaving a mental hospital with Professor Xavier and Beast to leave her old life behind. She knew that being back in New Jersey was going to bring back some bad memories for her.

As they continued to watch the news, Tony arrived in the room with Pepper, Forge, Beast and Professor Xavier.

"Hey, guys, I take it you're paying attention to the news?" Tony asked.

"I'm honestly wondering if my father knows about the Brotherhood attacking the senator. I wonder if he even told Senator Kelly. It wouldn't shock me if he didn't because, it's the perfect opportunity to make mutants look even more horrible in the public eye," Warren said. "My father has been known to screw people over, even close friends and family."

"But, Warren, we're going to have to try and do something to stop that from happening, because I don't want to see things get any worse," Jean said.

"Well, if you guys are doing this, and if you're serious, you're going to need something," Tony said. "Forge and I have been working on a side project together. It's down in the Danger Room, and I think that it can only help further. Follow me down there."

Scott, Jean, Bobby, Warren and Candy got up and proceeded to follow Tony, Beast, Forge and Professor Xavier down to the basement, along with Pepper. Forge could hardly seem to be able to contain his excitement as they made their way down there. When they got down to the Danger Room, Tony pressed down on a button that was near the control room, and the wall opened up to reveal mannequins with specially crafted suits, as well as masks to cover their faces.

"Custom-made suits that we made specifically for the Danger Room sessions, made special to accommodate all of your individual needs and biometrics," Forge announced proudly. "Bobby, yours will be allowed to adapt to your ability of controlling your body temperature and the mask will allow you to have thermal vision, allowing you to see the heat signatures of others. Warren, yours will allow for your wings to be out and open no need to keep them strapped down to your back. Hank, yours is made of material that can adapt to any of your needs as far as the physical aspects."

"Forge, this is amazing," Scott said with a grin.

"You can thank the both of us considering we both designed the suits," said Tony. "And those masks should allow you to conceal yourselves while you're out there. This should help. I can almost guarantee you guys that the Brotherhood won't even see it coming. However, I can say this. Hank has got a nickname. I think it's time you all officially got one. Jean, you're Marvel Girl. Scott, you're Cyclops. Warren, yours will be Angel. And Bobby, you will be known as Iceman."

Jean took in the sight of the uniform that was designed for her. It consisted of red pants that were skin-tight, a matching long-sleeved, cropped shirt that had a bright yellow X design on the chest, and yellow boots. It had a mask and cowl that pulled up over her head to disguise her face, while also being open enough to allow her hair to be exposed and flow down her back freely.

"How did we do?" asked Forge.

"It's perfect," Warren said.

"Well, we have the uniforms and the war plane . . . let's go to war," said Hank.

* * *

 **Outside Worthington Industries Factory – Downtown Newark**

Outside the factory where Senator Kelly's press conference was being held, the Brotherhood, minus Mystique and Rogue, were in position, ready to attack. Wanda was positioned at the nearby billboard. Pietro being second-in-command to Mystique was the one calling the shots. They had Quentin Quire – Kid Omega, already in position impersonating a police officer to act as their psychic inside the building. Blob, Toad and Avalanche were down on the ground with Pyro.

"How's your trigger finger, sis?" Pietro asked as he watched the limousine carrying Warren Worthington, Jr. and Senator Kelly pulled up. The press and the police were all there for the conference.

"Itching," Wanda said. "Having powers that control probability has its advantages."

" _I would say,"_ Toad said in the comms in a flirtatious tone.

"Enough flirting with my sister, Todd," Pietro said, shaking his head in disgust. "Quentin, are you in position?"

" _Everybody's in place,"_ Kid Omega said.

"Good . . . today, Senator Kelly is going to get the message. They're no stopping the mutants," Pietro said with a grin on his face. Finally, today was the day for them. They were going to make sure that their message was spread, and, they didn't care how they did it.

* * *

 **Up next: Striking Senator Kelly Part 2**


	13. Issue 13: Striking Senator Kelly Part 2

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier and his X-Corporation employees are struggling to fight for a peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants by keeping mutants employed. However, this task is proven to be difficult with the rise of Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants._

 _After having successfully recruited Anna-Marie "Rogue" D'Ancanto, the Brotherhood used her to to siphon the memories of Warren Worthington III's estranged father in effort to attack presidential-hopeful Senator Edward Kelly at his press conference. Meanwhile, Tony Stark, co-owner of X-Corporation, has revealed to his young prodigies that he has designed them specialized suits with the help of X-Corp engineer, Forge. Going by their codenames of Beast, Angel, Cyclops, Marvel Girl and Iceman, the five mutants prepare for a mission that will no doubt put them in the spotlight._

* * *

 **Issue 13: Striking Senator Kelly Part 2**

 **Worthington Industries Factory – Downtown Newark**

For Senator Edward Kelly, today was more than just a press conference. He, Trask, Stane and Hodge were going to debut a prototype of the Sentinels. The Sentinels were not by any means the finished product, but, this did show that they had something to keep mutants in line if Senator Kelly got elected for the presidency next year. So far, his approval rating was very high, considering he was promising to make sure that mutants were put on registry so that people knew which people were mutants, and any mutant that stepped out of line, they were going to be sent to Rikers Island. However, they also knew that they had to work with Alpha Flight, which already was a team of mutants working with the government to keep mutant criminals in line.

For Warren Worthington, Jr. he knew that the Brotherhood was going to attack this press conference. He was anticipating that, but that didn't mean he was exactly telling the senator. He looked over at Cameron Hodge, the ex-best friend of his son. As far as Warren Jr. was concerned, he had no son. His son had made his choice not to take the cure years ago. Hodge agreeing to help with researching the cure and building the Sentinels was a plus for Warren Jr., because that meant that they had one more prodigal son on their side. The Hodge family was a very wealthy and well-respected family in New York, which made for a great partnership between Cameron Hodge and Warren Jr.

As Senator Kelly was getting ready to take the stage to present the Sentinel prototypes, Quentin Quire – Kid Omega, was in position, preparing his full-blown psychic attack that he was going to perform on the police officers who were there for security. That would for sure lead to the cops aiming their guns at the senator, which should allow for Wanda to direct the bullets towards Kelly, Hodge, Stane, Trask and Warren Jr. It was too perfect of a plan, and Pietro Maximoff was just proud that he was the one who had come up with the idea, and not Mystique. However, what the Brotherhood didn't realize was that the mutants employed at X-Corporation as well as Alpha Flight were going to rain on their parade.

Senator Kelly straightened his tie, taking the stage as all the news stations got ready to cover the press conference. Between ABC News, CNN, FOX News and NBC News, pretty much every news station across America was there.

"As you know, last week, we've had incidents in New York City. The Brotherhood of Mutants is now threatening me! Now, am I surprised that they decided to try and leave the impression that I should be afraid of them? No, I am not. But, we should also all be vigilant, which is why, I am proud to announce the prototype Sentinels, courtesy of Stane Enterprises, Trask Industries and Hodge International. These three brilliant men, plus, my dear friend and biggest supporter, Warren Worthington, Jr. creating the cure for mutation, they are going to make sure that the mutants are kept in line. In fact, that cure is going to be tested soon enough, courtesy of Obadiah Stane and Cameron Hodge. My first act as president will be, as you all know, to create a mutant registration act, meaning that all mutants will have to register themselves under the government so that they can be identified.

"Of course, our current president, Norman Osborn, is all for this and is behind this one hundred percent. And, with Henry Peter Gyrich as my first choice for vice president, we can guarantee that mutants will not be allowed to think that they are above the law ever again. Now, I think that it's time we reveal the prototype Sentinels," Senator Kelly announced. That was the moment a Stane Enterprises employee pulled a cloth off to reveal the giant Sentinel prototypes, the robots towering over in the room which had high ceiling. Everyone in the room applauded at the sight of the prototypes.

"I know, and I can thank Obadiah Stane and Bolivar Trask for the brilliant design and getting these completed in a total of six months, and I cannot be prouder that we are one step closer to making this world safer for us, and for our children," Kelly continued to say. "As you know, part of why I firmly believe that a mutant registration is a necessity to this country is because both my children, who are fourteen and nine, got caught in the crossfire of a mutant attack at least two years ago. While they hadn't been harmed, they very well could have been, which is why I am determined to make sure that mutants who act out of line are held accountable. The first step is making them easy to identify. They do not have to be covered in fur, or scales or even look deformed. They could look like regular humans like you and me, but, they aren't human by any means.

"But, do not by any means compare mutants to people like Carol Danvers, or Steve Rogers – Captain America, because those people . . . they were just simply enhanced, and they were or are heroes. Mutants . . . I don't care if they're heroes or not. There are plenty that commit acts that make them look like vigilantes to the world. Those Morlocks who live in the sewers are the prime example . . . creating their own society to try and prove that they're too good for humans. This is why we must press forward with a mutant registration, so that our children will forever be safe in this country."

More applause followed. So far, Senator Kelly was winning people over with the fact that he was promising that so much was going to get accomplished if he became president. But, at this rate, it looked as though Senator Kelly had already won the presidential election, considering how many people throughout the country approved of everything he was looking to achieve.

Meanwhile, the Brotherhood continued to be in their positions, waiting for the right moment to strike. That was the moment Quentin heard Pietro speaking to him through the comm link.

" _Kid Omega, now's the time. Do your thing,"_ Pietro announced.

"Yes, Quicksilver, over and out," said Kid Omega in a soft voice that reminisced a tone that your vet would use when telling you that you had to put your pet dog down. His voice was eerie, calm, knowing what was going to end up happening at this moment in time. He then proceeded to launch a telepathic attack to control the minds of several police officers in the area to cock their guns in the direction of Cameron Hodge first. He was then aware of Wanda being right by the door, getting ready to warp the realities of several officers as well. She got close to several of them, creating illusions in their minds that caused them to get ready to fire their weapons as well. That was the moment an officer fired the first gun, right in the direction of Cameron Hodge, the bullet releasing from the gun with the sound of a loud bang. However, Hodge's security guards were around him wearing bullet-proof vests, and they jumped in front of Hodge to protect him. That was the moment Avalanche tore apart part of the building, allowing the attack to start.

"Mutants . . . stop them!" shouted Senator Kelly in a panic as his security started to turn against him. However, he managed to duck down behind a Sentinel that was nearby. However, that was the moment Quicksilver came running in, grabbing hold of the senator with a smirk on his face.

"No stopping the mutants, Senator," Pietro said.

"Let me go, you freak!" Senator Kelly shouted.

"I don't think so, Senator," Quicksilver said as he looked towards Quentin. He nodded for Kid Omega to come over and create a telepathic projection to the vulnerable senator. Quentin looked inside the man's head and saw his worst fear: mutants dominating the world, being superior, wiping out all humans . . . Kid Omega then proceeded to use those thoughts against Kelly, causing him to be paralyzed in fear where he stood. He grew pale as he watched the scene before him of the Brotherhood wreaking havoc throughout the building. Warren Jr. and Obadiah were taken over by Kid Omega's telepathic influence. Their jaws dropped open in shock and fear, trembling. Even Trask looked terrified as the Blob and Toad attacked several police officers. Just as Toad was about to attack the senator in his own way – by spitting his green, slimy mucus right in his face enough to suffocate him for a short period, a telekinetic force knocked him out of the way. Jean Grey – in her Marvel Girl uniform, mask and all, had managed to issue the attack. Beast ran in to take care of the Blob, who was beating several officers to a pulp with the help of his overly-large size. Bobby – Iceman went flying in to take care of Pyro, who was starting to set the building ablaze with his pyrokinesis. Scott – Cyclops was concentrating his powers on Quicksilver, his awareness of his surroundings coming handy in that moment. However, that didn't stop him from issuing a command to Warren – Angel.

"Get the senator and the others out of here, now Angel!" Cyclops ordered.

Angel walked over to his teammate, a look of bitterness on his face as he noticed his father hiding in the corner of the room.

'Angel, I know you have a lot of feelings of bitterness for your father and Hodge right now, but, you have to protect them too! You have to do the right thing!' Marvel Girl said to him telepathically.

'Jean . . .' Angel told her.

"Angel, just do it!" Cyclops told him.

Angel, despite all his resentment towards his father and Cameron, broke into flight. He swooped down and grabbed Cameron by the wrists to get him out of the room.

"Put me down you flying freak!" shouted Hodge.

"Whatever you say, Hodge," Angel whispered, before dropping Cameron down into the grass once he was outside. "You don't have to thank me, Cameron. But I did save your ass, just like how I did all those years ago. I never asked for anything in return . . . that's what brothers do," he added bitterly. That was the moment he saw the plane carrying members of Alpha Flight. Ms. Marvel flew into the mess as Wolverine came running in, claws out and ready for the attack. Thunderbird and Warpath made their way in, their bullet-proof bodies proven to be useful in this situation. They were then followed by Aurora, Northstar, Guardian, Vindicator, Shaman, Sasquatch, Puck and Snowbird. Snowbird transformed herself into an eagle, flying in alongside Angel to rescue more news crew as well as Warren Jr., Trask, Senator Kelly and Obadiah Stane. As much as Angel hated the idea of needing to be the one to save the lives of people that hated him, he also knew that it had to be done.

Wolverine came running in like a bat out of hell, going for the attack on Toad. However, he was stopped mid-way by Scarlet Witch, whose powers of manipulating probability were working in her favor. Vindicator and her husband Guardian were putting up force fields around themselves, as well as Marvel Girl, in time to avoid an attack their way being made by Pyro, who was still fighting against Iceman. Iceman put up his organic ice form to shield his body as well as intensify the cold around him. Beast and Sasquatch were working together against the Blob, Sasquatch's strength was managing to overpower the Blob as he held him still, allowing Marvel Girl to perform a telepathic attack to make the giant mutant fall asleep. However, the tricky one was Kid Omega, who was still creating telepathic projections in the minds of the officers guarding the place. Marvel Girl readied herself to perform another telepathic surge, this time on Kid Omega, but, Ms. Marvel already had her covered, using her powers to project a bolt of energy right at the omega-level telepath, knocking him back causing him to hit his head against the wall.

Ms. Marvel landed down on the ground beside Wolverine, looking around at the damage that had been caused. She and Thunderbird proceeded to make their way over to the police officers, knowing that they had to clean up the mess.

"We'll take it from here, Officer," Ms. Marvel said. "Alpha Flight will take these guys back to Alberta and we'll have them in a couple cozy cells in Rikers once the prison transfers are finalized.

"Thank you, Ms. Marvel," the officer said with a nod of his head as he watched Warpath, Marvel Girl, Beast, Sasquatch and Iceman get the Brotherhood onto the private plane that Alpha Flight had come on.

"Alright, time to test out Forge's power-dampening collars," said Cyclops.

"Beast, you and Forge managed to fix these, right?" asked Angel as he made his way over.

"Yes, these will be safe to wear long-term now," Beast said as he placed a collar on the unconscious form of Scarlet Witch, who had been knocked out by Puck and Northstar.

"Thank God," said Iceman. "Finally, we can just chill out now."

"Yeah," Angel whispered as he noticed Cameron and his father speaking to the press, along with Senator Kelly. However, that was the moment Warren Jr.'s eyes crossed paths with his son. His son had grown into a twenty-two-year-old young man. He was no longer the sixteen-year-old boy he'd thrown out of the house for not accepting the mutant cure. All Warren Jr. could be thankful for was that his son was wearing a mask to cover his eyes. Cameron also seemed to notice, because he had a look of bitterness and hatred as he looked at his former best friend. Angel felt a pang hit his chest as he noticed the look of hatred in the eyes of his father and former childhood friend. It stung like the pain of a thousand knives stabbing him in the chest. Marvel Girl seemed to sense Angel's feelings of hurt, because she walked over and rested a gentle hand on his shoulder.

'Damn you, Cam. Damn you, Dad,' Warren thought to himself. 'I'm so glad that my face is hidden behind a mask right now . . .'

"C'mon, Angel, let's go home before someone else catches on to our exploits," Marvel Girl whispered. She turned to face Wolverine and Ms. Marvel. "Hook these guys up with a cell in the Alpha Flight base. I'm pretty sure both the Canadian and American governments would want the Brotherhood in cells."

"We will, Red," Wolverine told her. "But, you kids did a really good job."

"Thank you, Wolverine," said Cyclops with a nod of his head before he and his teammates made their way to the Blackbird, where the professor and Forge and Tony were waiting for them. Once they were on the Blackbird and up in the air, the kids took their masks off, showing their faces.

"Okay, that was fun and not at all at the same time," Bobby said.

Warren sat in his seat on the plane behind Jean and Scott, a distant look on his face. It had been the first time he'd seen his father since he was sixteen years of age. However, that didn't mean it hurt less. Surprisingly enough, it hurt even more. Jean seemed to sense what he was feeling, because she turned to look at him.

"Warren," Jean started to say. "You okay?"

"It's just, seeing my dad today, it just shows me that he hasn't changed, and he'll never change. He still hates me . . . Cameron still hates me. I just – I thought that the further I got away from it, it would hurt less," Warren explained.

"I wish I can say that facing your past gets easier, but it doesn't," Jean said. "I nearly had a full-blown panic attack just coming here, because the last time I was in New Jersey, I was leaving a mental hospital. Believe me when I say, the pain never goes away . . . but, I think it'll heal with time."

"I wish," Warren said softly.

"Look, Warren, you saved the lives of people who hate you . . . it comes to show that you are and always will be better than what Senator Kelly would ever think of you," Professor Xavier said from where he sat next to Hank as Tony piloted the jet.

"I know. I just . . . it's just that needing to see my dad and Cameron for the first time in six years, I didn't think it would be that hard, but, really, I cannot believe that I had to do that," Warren said.

"Just be glad that this is over, and hopefully, you won't have to face either one of them ever again," said Scott.

"Yeah. I would be very content with not having to look at their faces again. I can almost guarantee you my dad didn't tell the senator about the Brotherhood attacking him. This shows that even if he is Senator Kelly's closest friend, he still will feel more than happy to screw him over in every way possible. So I am not surprised that my father probably knew, because he's still the same evil, hate-filled asshole he always was. He's one disgusting person. I may have cried in the past for him, and for my mother for tossing me out, but, now, I can say when I look at them, I just don't care anymore. I feel relief that I'm no longer part of their lives, and they don't deserve to have me in their life," Warren said, his voice bitter and cold. 'They deserve nothing from me, not one more tear; nothing,' Warren thought to himself, but, Jean could hear his thoughts loud and clear. 'They are soulless. There's nothing good about them, but why does it still hurt so much? Why?'

"Warren, I don't think you mean that," said Bobby.

"I do," Warren insisted.

"No, you don't," Jean said. "You feel as though you need to allow yourself to think that they do not deserve anything from you. But you just think that because you still feel betrayed and hurt by them because they screwed you over and they stabbed you in the back. I'm not saying that you have to forgive your mother, your father or Cameron yet, but, you've got to at least try and not allow yourself to be filled with hate like they are. Don't let it consume you. You're better than that."

Warren sat there, taking in Jean's words. Talking to Jean was almost like talking to God, because she had wisdom beyond her age. He knew in a way that Jean was right, and not just because she was a telepath. It was because she was able to have empathy and feel what others felt, even without using her powers. However, that didn't mean he was the least bit ready to forgive his father, his mother or Cameron yet, because being stabbed in the back by people that you love, or loved, nothing could take that pain away. His whole life, he'd wanted to be like his father; to please him, but, the minute his mutation manifested, his father had thrown him away.

"Thanks, Jeannie. You're . . . a good friend." Warren forced a smile onto his face through the pain he was feeling, but, his emotions betrayed him as he felt his eyes sting with tears. Jean just looked at him with sympathy.

"Come here." Jean silently pulled her winged friend into a firm hug, closing her eyes as she felt Warren shaking with silent sobs that he'd been holding in for too long. Scott sat there in his seat, leaning his head back as he closed his eyes, suddenly remembering the lyrics to a Skillet song he'd liked growing up: The older I get/maybe I'll get over it/it's been way too long for the times we missed/I can't believe it still hurts like this. And in that moment, for Warren, the lyrics couldn't be truer.

* * *

 **Up next: Slave Island**


	14. Issue 14: Slave Island

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier and Tony Stark struggle to fight for peace and unity between mutants and humans. Recently, their first act towards privatizing peace was sending their X-Corporation prodigies, Scott Summers, Jean Grey, Hank McCoy, Bobby Drake and Warren Worthington III out in uniforms with masks designed by X-Corp engineer Forge in effort to protect anti-mutant presidential nominee Senator Edward Kelly._

 _However, for Warren Worthington III, he has learned that his ex-best friend, Cameron Hodge, has gone into partnership with Tony's biggest competitor, Obadiah Stane, to help build and distribute Sentinels_ **–** _mutant-hunting robots designed to keep mutants in line._

* * *

 **Issue 14: Slave Island**

 **Trask Industries Facility – Cleveland, Ohio**

The weeks after Senator Kelly's press conference faded by into November, but, it did show Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane that the mutant issue was raising.

For Cameron Hodge, he'd recognized one of the masked mutants at the press conference as his former friend, Warren Worthington III. Growing up, he and Warren had been best friends since middle school. The two had been like brothers, Warren often being the one to stand up for Cameron against bullies at school and taking him under his wing. However, when he'd learned of Warren being a mutant through Warren's father, Cameron had felt nothing but pure disgust and loathing towards the kid that had been like a brother to him. As far as Cameron was concerned, whatever friendship he'd had with Warren was done, and he didn't want to have any kind of relationship with him. However, what disgusted Cameron even more was the fact that despite Warren being a mutant, he still got the girl.

Throughout their years of friendship, even as middle school teens, Cameron had always had a thing for Warren's girlfriend, Candy Southern. Her long black hair and dazzling blue eyes made her more beautiful than words could ever describe. Cameron could still hardly believe that Candy had chosen _Warren,_ a mutant, over him, a regular human being who was just as good-looking as Warren and maybe even smarter.

Now, as Cameron walked through Trask's facility in Cleveland, Ohio, he knew that he and Obadiah were meeting with Warren Worthington, Jr. to discuss the usage of the Legacy Cure and if it was safe or not to use on mutants. However, what Warren Jr. didn't know was that regardless if the cure was safe or unsafe, Cameron and Obadiah still had plans for it. In fact, the two had collaborated together and founded an island down near the Madagascar called Genosha, where they already had a couple dozen mutant prisoners that they were planning testing the Legacy Cure out on to see if it actually worked. Warren Jr. most certainly didn't know, and even Senator Kelly didn't know.

Cameron and Obadiah passed the Trask Industries workers who were building Sentinels that were going to be shipped to Genosha in order to hold the mutant test subjects in line. Senator Kelly was completely unaware of Cameron and Obadiah's intentions with the cure, and they both wanted to keep it that way, mostly because they knew if Senator Kelly heard what they were planning, he'd dissolve their partnership completely.

"Hello, gentlemen," said Warren Jr. as he approached them. "Now, I know that this cure hasn't been tested too thoroughly yet. I'm putting that in both your hands, because this is vital that it works. I also know that this is your opportunity to test out Trask's Sentinels. Now, you both know that if the cure or the Sentinels do not work as they should, Senator Kelly is not going to use them in the future as part of his potential presidency."

"Of course, Mr. Worthington," said Cameron. "You can actually thank Stane here for partially coming up with the design behind the Sentinels, because his company handles robotics and weapons much like Stark Industries. This is our chance as Tony Stark's competitors to prove that his approach of hiring mutants will not work, because who is to say that those mutants he hired won't stab him in the back? How do you think I felt when I found out your son was a mutant?"

"I know Cameron . . . and we saw him and his actions at the press conference. Sure, he got us out, and he and Alpha Flight stopped the Brotherhood, but, that doesn't mean he couldn't potentially be anything less than a danger. And what about those other mutants that Tony Stark hired? I mean, a boy no older than fourteen who can control ice? A telekinetic and telepathic? Who is to say that that red-headed girl couldn't control and manipulate our minds? What about that kid they had that can shoot lasers from his eyes?" Obadiah asked in a disgusted tone.

"This is why this cure must work . . . however, I do want to warn you both of something, and I want to make sure that you're both aware of this. Because I actually took the liberty of testing the cure on one mutant . . . a boy named Artie Maddox whose father came to me and asked me to test it on him because his son's mutation leaves him mute as well as deformed. The cure had started to suppress the mutation, but, it began to attack some vital organs in his body, namely his heart and liver. That boy is twelve years old. Thankfully, he didn't die, but he could have if he hadn't been rushed to the ER," Warren Jr. said, concerned about this.

"We do not know if it will cause other mutants the same harm," insisted Cameron, wanting to push it further.

"Cameron, I am just saying that there are risks involved with this cure, and I want to make sure that you are aware of the risks," said Warren Jr.

"We're well aware, Mr. Worthington. But, we need to just test the Legacy Cure further," Obadiah insisted.

"Are you one hundred percent sure?" asked Warren Jr.

"Yes, Mr. Worthington, are we talking Chinese?" inquired Cameron.

"You are talking English," Warren Jr. said. "I'm just saying I am not going to take responsibility for what you two choose to do with the cure. You're on your own with that."

"Yeah, okay," Cameron said. "Keep telling us that, Mr. Worthington."

"I will," Warren Jr. insisted. "Because the two of you better know and understand what it is that you are doing, because this is a risk."

"We do know what we're doing. We're very well aware," said Obadiah in an insisting tone of voice. "But, I can say this, Mr. Worthington. We actually have quite the brilliant plan in mind for what we're going to do with the Legacy Cure. If you just come with us to Cameron's office, we can show you what it is that we have got in mind."

* * *

 **Genosha – Prison Cells**

On the island of Genosha, the mutant prison cells were packed with a couple dozen mutants ranging in age and gender who were to be the first test subjects of the Legacy Cure Worthington Industries had cooked up. Among those prisoners included fifteen-year-old Alex Summers, fifteen-year-old Lorna Dane, twelve-year-old Jamie Madrox, eleven-year-old Megan Gwynn, nineteen-year-old Clarice Ferguson, fourteen-year-old Rusty Collins, fifteen-year-old Tabitha Smith, and eleven-year-old Jubilation Lee. As far as Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane were concerned, they didn't care that these were children. They were looking for subjects to test this cure on, they didn't care who they tested it on. It didn't matter if that mutant was an adult or a child; they were going to make sure that the cure was thoroughly tested by whatever means necessary.

As Alex Summers sat in his cell with his cell mate Lorna Dane, his thoughts drifted to his older brother Scott. Usually, he'd be the first one to call his brother, but, that morning, employees of Stane and Hodge had come knocking down his foster parents' door, using brutal force when saying that they were coming to collect him. Alex leaned back against his prison cell, power-dampening handcuffs around his wrists which were blocking his mutant powers. Of course, he'd told Scott he was a mutant in their recent email exchanges and phone calls, and from Scott's description of his own, their powers seemed to correlate to one another. He looked across his cell at Lorna, whose mutation had caused her naturally black hair to turn a bright, florescent green. It also didn't help that her powers were unstable due to her bipolar disorder. She had been in and out of psychiatric wards since the age of twelve. Lorna had her back to her cell, her own plastic handcuffs surrounding her wrists as she sat there with a solemn expression on her face.

In the cell across from them resided Jamie Madrox, a boy who could create multiple copies of himself, and the youngest inhabitant of the prison, Megan Gwynn, who's mutation was just simply pastel-colored wings which allowed her to fly, and a create a special dust which allowed her to create hallucinations. As far as Alex was concerned, there was nothing harmful about Megan or Jamie, but, Hodge and Stane just didn't care that two of these inhabitants in the prison were a little boy and girl. It was too much for the mutant teen to take in. Shaking his head, Alex pushed himself to sit on his cot. He couldn't take just sitting there in a cell feeling useless. This whole situation sucked a thousand times over.

Soon enough, Jamie and Megan both looked as though they were sick of waiting to see what was going to end up happening to them. They were eleven and twelve, children; they were innocents. It was something that Alex couldn't believe, the fact that Hodge and Stane were involving little kids. He could understand involving nineteen-year-olds like Clarice Ferguson who was legally an adult, but, children who didn't have a right to decide anything for their selves?

"Alex?" asked Megan in a small voice. "How – How long have we been stuck here?"

"I've been stuck here a day, Megan," Alex said.

"I-I honestly think I've been here for a month," said Jamie.

"What are they going to do to us?" Megan asked.

"They're looking to see if they can 'cure' us," Clarice explained in a cynical tone. "Let's just hope and pray that that's all they plan to do, because I cannot take another day in here, to be quite honest with you."

"I'm right with you there, Clarice," Rusty said, his fiery, reddish-blonde hair matching exactly what his power was, which was pyrokinesis.

They could hear the cries of more mutant children, who were sitting in their cells in fear for their lives, thinking that they were about to be killed on this island. Many of these small mutant children, some of those being no older than nine years old had been separated from their parents. Alex felt disgust. As a fifteen-year-old, he was surprisingly very smart and knew everything that was going on. He knew that Senator Kelly was hiding stuff from the press about his intentions as president of the United States. All Alex knew was that he wanted off this island, because the way he and so many of these mutants were being treated was no different than how Holocaust victims had been treated.

'This is disgusting,' Alex thought to himself. 'There's no way that anyone in the government approved of something like this to happen . . . no fucking way . . .'

* * *

 **Cleveland Trask Industries Facility – Cameron Hodge's Office**

By the time Cameron and Obadiah finished presenting to Warren Worthington, Jr. what their plans were with Genosha, the elder Worthington sat there, digesting it all.

The idea that his Legacy Cure was going to be tested further on a couple dozen mutants on some private island left him speechless, and not in a good way. He had already warned Cameron and Obadiah the dangerous possibilities that this cure could be highly deadly towards mutants, but, Stane and Hodge seemed very adamant about wanting to press forward, without involving Senator Kelly. It was something that Warren Jr. did not like, not in the slightest. He swallowed, contemplating what it was that he should say. He knew that this was taking it to a level that he did not want it to. In fact, due to the fact that the Legacy Cure had been deadly towards Artie Maddox, he wanted to terminate the project completely and get rid of the cure. He also wanted to let Senator Kelly in on the fact that he was terminating the project of the cure because he knew that if Senator Kelly knew that the cure was as dangerous as it was, the presidential candidate wouldn't go for it at all.

"So, Mr. Worthington, what do you think?" asked Cameron, clearly in pride over his idea of holding mutants hostage on an island so that they were the first test subjects.

"I think that this is insane, Hodge!" Warren Jr. said, shaking his head. "Cam, I was planning on terminating the project of the Legacy Cure because it nearly killed that boy! And now you're telling me you're pressing forward with it, and to top it all off, you've got the son of the Madrox family in your custody! These are _children_ you're talking about there!"

"And like you were thinking about your son when you threw him out?" questioned Obadiah.

Warren took in Obadiah's words. Of course, he had a point, and he realized what a hypocrite he looked like. Here he was, worrying suddenly about the fact that children were being held on an island against their will, yet he wouldn't even talk to his own child. He swallowed, knowing what a horrible position that he was being put in at the moment. He knew that he couldn't do too much to just make his son hate him further. His son hated him enough as it was.

"No, Obadiah, do not compare the two!" Warren Jr. snapped. "I'm telling you right now release those mutants off Genosha immediately, because I am terminating this cure because it can kill people! Senator Kelly would not go for this!"

"Well, Warren, we actually were anticipating your reaction, so, how about we make a deal?" Hodge asked as he pulled out a small pistol, aiming it at Warren Jr. "You give us the cure right now and not go to Senator Kelly to talk his ear off about it, or you die, plain and simple."

"Cameron . . ." Warren Jr. whispered his face blanching.

"Mr. Worthington, this is our chance to get rid of some of the mutant population. You of all people should appreciate that," whispered Hodge.

"No . . . No absolutely not!" Warren Junior said.

"Oh contraire, Mr. Worthington, you _will_ go along with this," said Obadiah.

"But if you end up killing those mutant prisoners –"

"Then we've got at least twenty-five less mutant menaces to worry about now, don't we?" asked Hodge. "Now, hand us the samples of the cure so we can ship them off to Genosha along with our Sentinels, and we'll be on our way." He cocked the gun, his hand on the trigger.

'What the hell do I do?' Warren Junior thought to himself. 'This is obviously illegal . . . if I am caught up in this I'll be fucked. God I really did it this time. I really did it. Either I hand over this cure and risk the lives of mutants on that island, or I potentially get shot in the head right here in Hodge's office. Oh God . . . help me.'

Warren Worthington, Jr. knew that he was in the worst position possible. He knew that partially, it was his fault for going into a partnership with Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane. He also knew now that he had betrayed and threw away his own son. He realized just how badly he had screwed up, and how he had done this to himself. He knew that he didn't have too many choices at this moment in time. It was either hand over the mutant cure to Stane and Hodge, or die. Finally, he let out a sigh of defeat.

"The cure is here and ready for you," he finally decided to say.

"Good choice," whispered Cameron. "You might not be thinking this now, but, you'll be thanking us both later. Trust me." The two crooked business men left Cameron's office, leaving Warren Junior there with his thoughts. He knew now more than ever that he had to do something to try and stop Hodge and Stane, but, what could he do? Those two were probably going to end up exterminating at least twenty mutants on the island of Genosha. Finally, Warren Worthington Junior knew what he had to do. He had to alert his son, even though it was the last thing that he wanted to do at that moment in time.

'I'm sorry, my son. It turns out, you were right. God, what have I done?' Warren Jr. thought to himself, thinking about how he had failed his one and only son.

* * *

 **Up next: Deception**

 **A/N:**

 **Just so you know, I updated today, a day early, because tomorrow is United States Mother's Day. Also, I'm going to see Avengers: Endgame this afternoon. I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate that than posting early. Also, I am debating if I want to post weekly, just because there is so much story I want to get out sooner rather than later. What do you think of that?-**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


	15. Issue 15: Deception

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Xavier and Tony Stark sent their young, X-Corporation prodigies off to protect mutant-hating presidential nominee Senator Edward Kelly. However, in the process of doing this deed, Warren "Angel" Worthington III has learned that his former friend, Cameron Hodge, is indeed in partnership with several of X-Corporation's biggest competitors, including not only his estranged father, but, also Obadiah Stane and Bolivar Trask._

 _Additionally to this, Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane have revealed to Warren Worthington, Junior that they bought an island called Genosha. They are using the island to hold over twenty young mutants hostage in effort to test Warren Jr.'s mutant cure out on_ **–** _despite the fact that Warren Jr. warned them that the cure is potentially deadly. Now, armed with this information, Warren Worthington, Jr. must face the consequences of his research and the decision of whether or not to reach out to his son for help._

* * *

 **Issue 15: Deception**

 **Marsden Regional High School**

Life for Bobby Drake seemed to be getting more complicated as the months passed by. After Senator Kelly's press conference in New Jersey the previous month, he'd been increasingly on edge. That was especially since recently, in the media, the news has been dubbing him and his friends from X-Corporation the "X-men." Just them having a label put on them for when they were in masks was what worried him, considering everyone was wondering exactly who these X-men were under their masks. This included Bobby's new classmates at Marsden Regional High School in Manhattan. Somehow, Bobby was managing to hide his mutant powers from his classmates, however, he did confide in only four people that were his closest friends: Angelica Jones, Peter Parker, Mary-Jane Watson, and Johnny Storm.

Johnny Storm was the younger brother of renowned scientist Susan Storm who was engaged to Reed Richards. Most definitely, that brought a comfort to Bobby. His other friend, Angelica Jones, was also a mutant. Angelica's powers included pyrokinesis and flight. However, ever since she revealed her mutant powers in the eighth grade the previous year in effort to save the lives of students while on the eighth grade class trip to Six Flags, Angelica's powers were known among the school. As a result, Angelica became alienated amongst her peers, which resulted in Peter, Mary-Jane and Johnny taking her under their wing.

As Bobby walked down the hallways of the high school with Peter at his side, his thoughts drifted to the fact that over a month ago, he'd had a label slapped onto him by the media. It was surreal, one side thinking of him as a superhero, while another side thought of him as a troublemaker who was just adding fuel to the fire. He still could hardly believe it. In many ways, it made Bobby nervous about being exposed as a mutant to his new high school. He'd spent the whole month or so trying to put the past with his old high school behind him.

"So, Bobby, if you need any tutoring with bio, let me know," said Peter as they made their way to their lockers.

"Yeah, Pete, thanks, considering the fact that math is pretty much the only subject that I am good at," said Bobby. "But, I did want to ask you what your thoughts are on that lesson we had in bio about mutation?"

"I just – I find it interesting that people are trying to cure something that probably cannot even be cured, if you know what I mean. I mean, it's not like mutations are deadly . . . as far as I am concerned, unless you're causing me bodily harm, I don't give a shit if you're a mutant, Bobby," Peter said, opening his locker.

Bobby let out a sigh as he shut his locker door. "Yeah, Pete, I know, I know," he said. "It's just, the fact that I am having a label put on me and that I am being known in the media, it's something that worries me. I told you, Angelica, Johnny and MJ from the day that I met you about what had happened at my previous high school. That was a horrible experience and I'd rather not relive it again."

"Yeah, I know." Bobby and Peter proceeded to make their way to the cafeteria for lunch. When they arrived, they looked to see that Mary-Jane and Johnny were there, but, Angelica was nowhere to be seen, which worried the both of them. The fact that Angelica was not in her usual spot beside Johnny was concerning, because she and Johnny always came to lunch together and were rarely seen apart.

"Hey, guys, did you see Ange?" asked Peter as he took his seat next to Mary-Jane.

"No, I haven't seen her since last period when she got called into the principal's office," said Johnny with a shrug.

"Why would she get called into the principal's office?" asked Mary-Jane. Angelica was a very honorable student, and she was not the type to just get called into the principal's office. She never got in any kind of trouble.

"God only knows," whispered Peter as he pulled out his bagged lunch he'd brought with him.

The friends sat there, contemplating what was going on and why Angelica Jones of all people would get called into the principal's office all a sudden and get pulled out of class like that. She hadn't done anything that would raise concern from anybody. Even though she was a mutant, Angelica didn't just use her powers whenever she felt like it. In fact, she kept her powers on the down low. Throughout the seventh grade she'd gotten teased and got pegged as "Angelica Jinx". Peter, Mary-Jane and Johnny could only assume that that was because of slip-ups with her powers which were out of control at the time. Johnny remembered how that had been at the time, because that was around the time that his mother had died after a severe car accident. It had led to his older sister, Sue, attempting to mother him and be the woman of the house. There was definitely a kindred spirit between Mary-Jane, Bobby, Johnny and Peter. Peter lived with his aunt and uncle because his mother and father had dropped him off at his Uncle Ben and Aunt May's doorstep. Mary-Jane had a drunk for a father. Bobby's parents were probably about to disown him. As far as they knew, Angelica was the only one that didn't have a screwed up family life. Her father and mother loved each other, and at least they accepted her mutation.

"Do you think that . . .?" asked Johnny in worry for his girlfriend. It suddenly hit him that part of the reason why Angelica probably got called into the principal's office was because she was about to get pulled out of school like several other mutants in the past few weeks.

"I do not know," said Bobby. "I mean, it's not like she flaunts her powers to the school, so we should not worry yet about that."

"Good point," Mary-Jane said, brushing her red hair out of her face. "She knows better than that. Because Angelica understands not to use her powers publicly, especially after everything that had happened last year. I'm still surprised she had managed to suppress her powers as long as she did."

"It's just, ever since what happened a month ago with Senator Kelly's press conference, I've been on edge," Bobby said.

"Yeah, tell me about it Bobby. You should take your own advice and _chill_ _out_ ," said Johnny jokingly.

"Coming from the hot-head blonde future underwear model," said Bobby with a roll of his eyes. "Though, Johnny, I can say this about you. I'm the one that has to tutor you in math all the time, because let's face it. When it comes to math, I take it seriously and I do everything right. This kid here, he shows up late and just last week, took his pants off in class!"

"And you do the same in Spanish class so you're no better," Peter pointed out.

"Thank you for pointing out my hypocrisy Pete. We all need friends like you," said Bobby jokingly.

Suddenly, that was the moment Angelica walked over to their lunch table, her auburn hair flowing down her back as she held her backpack in one hand. She had an expression on her face that Bobby couldn't read clearly, but, he did know that it could not be anything good.

"Hey, guys," she whispered. "Don't expect that I'll be staying for lunch . . . I just . . . I'm coming here because . . ."

"What's wrong, Ange?" asked Johnny out of worry for his girlfriend.

"I got called into the principal's office. Apparently, there are some officials here that want to ship me off to some island somewhere . . ." Angelica started to say.

"Wait, what island?" asked Peter incredulously.

"I do not know . . . they wouldn't tell me much. All they told me is that they are sending me off somewhere, and my parents complied with it. I've got no choice I have to go," Angelica said. That was Angelica. She was the type of person that didn't want to cause any trouble. If she had to go somewhere with those officials, she was going to go, and she was going to go quietly. She was calm despite her fiery, passionate personality.

"But, they've got no right to just pull you out of school, babe," Johnny said.

"Oh alert the media! Johnny Storm, Marsden Regional's resident wise-cracking slacker suddenly cares that I am getting pulled out of school!" Angelica said sarcastically.

"I'm serious here, Angelica," said Johnny. "For once, I am not joking okay? Just . . . what the hell is happening? This is the third time this month that mutant classmates of ours have gotten pulled out of school to talk with private officials. There's something fishy going on here. I am starting to wonder if President Osborn has got any clue."

"No, and even if he did, Harry would tell me something," said Peter, referring to his close friend, Harry Osborn, who was President Norman Osborn's son. Harry didn't go to school with them, but, he did go to a fancy prep school out in California. It was no lie that Harry and Norman's relationship was strained. Peter had seen it firsthand as a kid.

'There's something about this that doesn't feel right,' Bobby thought to himself. 'I mean, I know for a fact that Warren's dad is looking for a way to test his mutant cure . . . no . . . no Warren's father wouldn't be behind this. There has got to be something else going on . . .'

"Well, whatever is going on Angelica, we wish you the best," Mary-Jane said, feeling saddened that her and Peter's friend had to leave school at a time like this.

Angelica made her way around to hug Johnny. He kissed her forehead softly.

"I love you," Johnny told her.

"I love you, too," Angelica said quietly before she exited the cafeteria.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Tony's Office**

" _Now, in other news, there is an increasing number of mutant teenagers and children missing, ranging in ages from nineteen to as young as ten years old. Some were taken from their homes while others were pulled out of school by authorities from Hodge International and Stane Enterprises. Why these mutant children are going missing, nobody knows. But, in the wake of Worthington Industries about to announce what they are going to do with the Legacy Cure project . . ."_

Tony let out a sigh as he and Pepper continued with watching the news. During the past couple of weeks, they were hearing rumors of mutant children going missing suspiciously. They knew for a fact that Professor Xavier knew which was why he was creating strict curfews for Warren, Bobby, Jean and Scott to make sure that they got home safely if they were going out anywhere. They were additionally going to be having Happy drive Bobby to and from school from that moment on. Tony drummed his fingers on his desk before shutting the news off.

"I can't believe this. I mean a month after these kids do something good, this shit hits the fan," whispered Tony bitterly as he poured himself a glass of Jack Daniels.

"Yeah, plus, they're getting a nickname in the media: the X-men," said Pepper. "You gotta admit, it has a nice ring to it."

"Yeah, you can admit it, Pepper, it does make sense given that they are having their futures secured by X-Corporation," Tony said, leaning in closer to Pepper to attempt taking her by the hand.

"Tony . . ." Pepper started to whisper.

"Pepper," Tony said.

"Tony, no . . . okay? We have to keep this professional because everyone knows how you are with girls," said Pepper in a stern voice, trying to hide the fact that she was secretly turned on by Tony's eccentric charm.

"Like that matters, Pepper. You're killing me here," Tony said to her with a small shake of his head.

"Somehow, I think that that is the booze talking."

That was the moment Professor Xavier came into Tony's office, a look of concern on his face.

"Mr. Stark, Miss Potts, you two might want to come to my office. I am calling Warren as well . . . his father called," said Charles.

"Wait, what?" asked Tony in shock as Professor Xavier telepathically called Warren to meet him in his office. Tony and Pepper followed the professor out into the hallway and to his private office, where they walked in to see a holographic image of Warren Worthington, Jr.

"Mr. Worthington, to what do I owe this conference?" asked Tony. He didn't know why Warren Worthington, Jr. was calling him, of all people in the world, but, the older Worthington had to be desperate.

" _This is important, Mr. Stark. It-It could be something that could potentially help your X-men,"_ said Warren Junior, keeping his facial expression neutral, but, Pepper, Charles and Tony could tell that he was anxious.

"Why would you want to help X-Corporation? After all, we are your biggest competitor," Tony pointed out to the father of one of his first employees.

" _I know . . . I know, the owner of Worthington Industries helping X-Corporation sounds like an oxymoron right now. But this is vital, Mr. Stark. I-I need to speak to my son,"_ Warren Jr. said urgently just as Warren Worthington III walked into the room.

"Hello, Professor, what do you –?" Warren started to ask. As soon as he saw the holographic image of his father, he started to walk out of the room. "Goodbye," he said coldly.

"Warren, wait," Pepper said. "This is vital."

"Oh I'm _sure_ it is," Warren spat bitterly as he turned back around. He thought to himself, 'What the hell does my father want from me? He doesn't speak to me for six years and _now_ he wants to talk to me? He must really be desperate! I can't believe him! I really cannot believe him. Piece of shit that he is! Who does he think he is? I mean for God's sake he throws me out, and _now_ he wants to talk to me! Yeah, that's nice!'

" _Warren, you've got every right to hate me right now. I understand if you do not even want to look at my face. Hell, it'll be justified if you want to choke the life out of me after I tell you what it is that I am about to say to you. But, Warren, son, this is important. Something happened, and I need your guys' help."_ As Warren Junior said those words, he sounded completely sincere, enough to make Warren III stop in his tracks. _"Son, I mean it. This is something that I cannot handle because it is completely out of my hands."_

"What is it?" Warren asked his father, his tone still filled with anger and disgust. He really didn't want to stand there and have to hear his father talk, but, at the same time, there was a small part of him that was hoping his father would apologize and really mean it. He would hear his father out, but, that did not mean he liked it in the slightest.

" _Warren, son, as you know, Worthington Industries continued to develop the Legacy Cure, even after your mother and I disowned you . . . until now, we hadn't had it tested at all, to see if it was dangerous or not. But, recently, I tested it on a young boy named Artie Maddox. His father came to me asking me to test it out on his son because his son's mutant powers prevents him from being able to speak. He's mute, and I did. And let's just say that the mutant cure, it has some side effects that leave me very concerned. It didn't just attack the X-gene, it attacked some of the vital organs in Artie's body and he very well could have died if he hadn't been rushed to a hospital. Just the other day, I visited Cameron and Obadiah Stane over at one of their facilities in Ohio. They told me that they have already taken at least twenty mutants . . . mostly children, to send them off to some island Cameron owns called Genosha. He is planning on experimenting the cure on those mutants. I do not know how he managed to hide this deception from me for so long, or even from Senator Kelly, but, he managed to make sure that nobody knew about it,"_ Warren Junior was saying.

"You could have just said no!" Warren spat out angrily. He hardened his gaze, keeping his guard up. He was worried if he let his guard down again, he would end up getting stabbed in the back and betrayed.

" _I would have if he hadn't threatened to put a bullet in my head,"_ Warren Jr. said to his son. _"This isn't right. I did not want to create this cure to kill mutants, let alone mutant children. I-I honestly saw it as curing an illness . . ."_

"I'm not sick Dad!" Warren yelled, glaring hard at his father in disgust and loathing. He could feel his face starting to turn bright red. "I never was! And now, suddenly, all control gets taken out of your hands and you're now on your knees begging for _my_ help? Wow, that's rich! That's really, really rich coming from you!"

" _Son, hear me out. I'll never use anything especially if it means costing the lives of people, Warren. I was actually going to terminate the project completely to prevent it from being used. But Cameron and Stane were willing to blow my head off if it meant using this cure on their mutant test subjects on Genosha. I have the coordinates. I need you and the X-men to go there and stop the both of them."_

"And why the hell should I do _anything_ for you?" asked Warren. "Why should I? What have you done for me in the past six years?! You act like that cure you created was for _me?_ It was only for you! It was always about you and your reputation of having the perfect, "normal", American family! You'd put me on that pedestal my whole life, and when I'd lost that "perfect" image, you tossed me out!"

" _Because I screwed up, son. I can admit it when I've made a mistake."_

"It took you six years to realize this?" Warren still sounded contemptuous and repulsed.

" _Please, son, hate me later. You-You have got to do this and expose this deception to the public. Because what Hodge and Stane are doing is illegal, inhumane experimentation. This is so wrong, I don't know how I can possibly make it right."_

"You can start by taking some accountability for your own screw-ups," whispered Warren, his chest starting to hurt.

" _I know son, but, I-I want to find a way to try and make this up to you, and part of that is by alerting you and telling you that you've got an opportunity now to stop this before it's too late. You have the power to do that, Warren . . . I just . . . I'm so sorry, son."_

Warren swallowed hard. Was he hearing this right? Did his father actually apologize? He never apologized for anything, ever. "Are you drunk right now? Because that's probably the first time I've ever heard anything sincere from you in years."

" _I know. I know I've got a lot of making up to do, Warren, but, you have a chance to prevent something worse from happening,"_ Warren Junior said.

Warren let out a sigh. He was hoping and praying to God that his father wasn't secretly planning to screw him over like he did with Senator Kelly at that press conference a month ago. "Okay, Dad. Okay," he said.

"Alright, what are the coordinates to Genosha?" asked Tony.

* * *

 **Candy Southern's Apartment**

That evening, Candy was getting ready for her evening classes that she and Warren took together at Pace. Rather than dorm at Pace, Candy had preferred to live in her own apartment with a roommate and take the train every day to school. She did that every day when she attended parochial school since she was twelve, she didn't want that to change. She was going to take a train and walk ten blocks to school until the day she died.

Candy stood there, looking at herself in the mirror as she brushed her hair to make herself look as presentable as she possibly could before heading to school for the rest of the night. She let out a sigh as she stepped out of her apartment, locking up behind her and walking down the hallway.

As Candy proceeded to step into the elevator, she didn't notice that somebody else was in the elevator as well. However, when she turned around, she looked to see a familiar face she hadn't seen in years.

"Oh, hi Cameron." Candy forced a smile onto her face at the sight of her and Warren's former friend, Cameron Hodge. He looked the same as he did six years ago: blonde, blue-eyed and horn-rimmed glasses, wearing a Louis Vuitton suit and tie. He was definitely someone she hadn't expected to see at all. The last time she'd spoken to him, it was an argument about her choosing Warren over him. Candy felt loyalty to Warren due to her having been his friend since they were in pampers. She wasn't going to just abandon him because he wasn't a throw-away friend to her.

"Hi Candy, I haven't seen you in quite a few years," Cameron said.

"Yeah, yeah it's been like, what? Six years or so?"

"Yeah, it has been." Cameron nodded.

"Well, what are you doing here? How did you figure out where I live now?" Candy asked, curious.

"You know I've got contacts in high places, Candy," Cameron told her.

"Well, I really wish I can stay and chat tonight, but, I've got my evening classes tonight and I can't afford to be late," Candy said when they reached the lobby. "I graduate in December, and that means after graduation, Tony Stark is promoting me and Warren to be CFOs of X-Corporation. It's a big deal for the both of us because that means Tony is entrusting us with the company's finances. He's putting a lot of faith in the both of us, so Warren and I cannot screw it up."

"I can give you a ride if you want." Cameron flashed Candy the smile he'd give her whenever he'd attempt flirting with her back when they were in high school together. It didn't surprise Candy in the slightest, because Cameron had always had a thing for her.

"No, no, Cameron, I'm good with taking the train to school. You know I prefer going on foot and taking the subway." Candy smiled, trying to be polite about it and shake Cameron off. For the first few years she'd known him, he'd been a good friend to her and Warren, but after Warren's mutation happened, Cameron's true colors had been exposed. It was a time where she and Warren learned who their real friends were.

"C'mon, Candy, really?"

"Cam, no, okay? You were always a flirt with me, but, I chose Warren," Candy said sternly.

"Why in the fuck did you choose him?" asked Cameron as they walked out of the apartment complex. The fact that he was turning around this quickly didn't surprise Candy either. Cameron could go from really sweet and polite to enraged and unstable at the drop of a hat. It made him come across to Candy as a very unhinged, troubled person, and it came to show that he hadn't changed.

"C'mon Cam, you know that's not me." Candy rolled her eyes at him. "Besides, why are you _talking_ to me? I haven't spoken to you in six years because you never bothered to try and keep a relationship with me!"

"Come on, you know that's not true, Candy. You _could_ have had a relationship with me and not Warren," Cameron insisted. "You know you're too good for the mutie! The only reason why you choose to be with him is for his money! I mean, I can't say I blame you 'cause after you marry him he'll put you in a beautiful home and give you a lot of wealth . . ."

"Cameron, no, shut up!" Candy said angrily. "Don't ever speak about Warren like that. I am not with him for his money. I don't _care_ about his money! You made it sound like he picked up off of Fifty-Second Street, and he fucking _put me_ here! Don't ever speak to me like that again, you piece of lowlife shit!" She felt Cameron grabbing her wrist and dragging her along somewhere. "Cameron, get your hands off of me, now!" She started trying to shove him off of her as he dragged her around the corner to where a private car was awaiting. She then felt something against her back. She looked to see that it was indeed a handgun. She blanched, suddenly having the sensation of feeling sick to her stomach.

"Get in the car, Candy. Do as I say, and there won't be a problem," Cameron whispered. He shoved her into the backseat of the car, and Candy peered inside to see Obadiah Stane in there too. As soon as she was inside the car, Candy could feel her wrists being handcuffed behind her back.

"Cameron . . . what the hell is this?" she asked, worried about where this was headed.

"You're coming with us," Cameron said.

"Well where are we going?" Candy asked. "Because I like to know when I am handcuffed in the back seat of a car with Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane where it is that I happen to be going."

"You don't have to know just yet, Ms. Southern," said Obadiah in a voice that was deadly calm, too calm.

"He's right, Candy," Cameron told her softly. "Now, you will be quiet for the remainder of the car ride, or we will have to force you to shut up." Candy noticed Obadiah had a piece of cloth in his hands, most likely for her. She felt bile rising in her throat as the car drove away, her hands starting to tremble.

'I don't know what Cameron thinks he's doing . . . but, I do know that it cannot be anything good,' Candy thought to herself, the cold metal of the handcuffs tight on her wrists and bruising her as she sat there in the car.

* * *

 **Up next: Genosha**

 **A/N:**

 **Like I said, from here on, I will be posting weekly just to help wrap this story up. Therefor, be on your A game with the reviews and keep them coming. Because before you know it, volume 2 will be posted on here! -**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**

 **Also, be sure to check out my new story, The Evolution Project!**


	16. Issue 16: Genosha Part 1

_In a world that hates and fears them, Tony Stark and Charles Xavier's X-Corporation prodigies prepare for what would be one of the most important missions of their young lives. Recently branded as the "X-men" by the media after having rescued Senator Edward Kelly, Bolivar Trask, Warren Worthington, Jr. and Obadiah Stane, the X-men have gotten a call from Warren Worthington III's estranged father, warning them of Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane preparing to illegally test the Worthington Industries "Legacy Cure" on young mutants who are being held prisoner on the island. Among these prisoners include Scott Summers' little brother, Alex, and Bobby Drake's best friend, Angelica Jones._

 _Additionally to this, Cameron Hodge has taken Warren's girlfriend, Candy Southern, as a hostage to use her as leverage against the X-men, hoping to lure the X-men to the island of Genosha._

* * *

 **Issue 16: Genosha Part 1**

 **Genosha – Prison Cells**

Alex Summers was just sitting there in his cell with Lorna, staring up at the ceiling. He was wondering when that mutant cure was going to get injected into him at that point, because he just wanted to get the hell out of there as soon as possible. As he sat there, he looked around at the other prisoners, including the newest prisoner, Angelica Jones. Angelica was now Clarice Ferguson's cellmate, and she was no younger than Alex was. They were both freshmen in high school with futures ahead of the both of them, but, Hodge and Stane obviously didn't see it that way.

"So, Angelica, where are you from?" asked Clarice dryly.

"I'm from New York, Manhattan to be exact," said Angelica as she examined the power-dampening handcuffs around her wrists which were suppressing her mutant powers. "I mean, I already see several students from the high school that I go to, so at least I'm not alone in that department. God, this whole thing sucks. I hate that I need to be here."

"Yeah, me too," said Rusty Collins from where he sat in his cell.

"Join the club, everyone," said Jubilation Lee in her usual sarcastic tone, her long black hair flowing down her back, the sleeves of her signature yellow trench coat rolled up.

"Jubilation, we really do not want to hear your attitude right now, bitch," Clarice said.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I'm just pissed that I got dragged by the hair out of my foster parents' home to get injected with some mutant cure!" shouted Jubilation, leaning her head against her cell wall.

"Jubilation, just shut up!" shouted a mutant named Sam Guthrie in his thick, Kentucky accent.

"We're done with you and your wise-ass attitude," Jamie Madrox groaned.

"Agreed!" shouted a mutant prisoner with purple, scaly skin and glowing red eyes.

"Can I just get some peace and quiet in here?" said another mutant with bubble-gum pink hair and bright blue eyes.

"Alright fine then!" Jubilation cried out, rolling her eyes.

"If you keep rolling your eyes like that, then we are going to beg for you to get the cure first! Bloody hell!" said Megan Gwynn behind a clenched jaw.

Finally, that led to everyone in the prison shutting up. Even Jubilation surprisingly enough shut her mouth. All they knew was that they just wanted to get it over with. Mutants like Megan and Jamie have been stuck there for about a month, and they were willing to do anything. In fact, they had tried to escape a few times, only to be hit with stun guns by the guards. All they could do was sit there and wait for their fate to come.

* * *

 **Shores of Genosha**

Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane landed in their private jet on the shores of Genosha, several of their employees handling the Legacy Cure, which was packed away in boxes. They knew that soon enough, they were about to test it on the mutant prisoners that they had on the island. As far as Cameron and Obadiah knew, they had at least twenty-five prisoners locked away in their cells. In fact, they felt as though they had hit the jackpot with getting Jamie Madrox, the twelve-year-old son of Dr. Daniel Madrox. They knew that Daniel had struggled with suppressing Jamie's powers when Jamie was a baby, so this was a golden opportunity to Obadiah and Cameron.

However, for Cameron, knowing that he now had Candy Southern as well was something that excited him. Candy was still handcuffed, not knowing what was going on. But, she did know that it could not be anything good. She'd had a sick feeling in her stomach since Cameron had shoved her into his private car. All he'd told her was that if she made a sound on the whole plane ride to Genosha, she was going to get gagged. She knew he'd taken her bag which had her cell phone in it, so she wouldn't be able to call Warren for anything. She was being dragged out of the plane roughly by the hair by Cameron. Finally, she couldn't stand the silence anymore.

"Cameron, what are you –?" she began to ask. That was the moment she felt a piece of cloth getting shoved into her mouth and tied around her head to prevent her from speaking.

"I told you to shut up!" Cameron said to her harshly, clutching handfuls of her hair tighter in his fist, jerking her head as he dragged her along, past the prison where the mutant prisoners were, to a section of the island that appeared to be a science lab of sorts. He continued to shove her along, keeping his handgun against her back. He'd forcefully removed her winter jacket on the plane ride there, considering they were now on an island near Madagascar, hidden from the rest of the world.

Cameron continued to drag Candy along to his laboratory, where he was going to be testing out the Legacy Cure on the mutant prisoners on the island. Once she was inside, Candy took a good look at her surroundings, noticing in addition to the medical equipment, there also appeared to be a wide range of devices that could only be used for torture. She took in the sighting of a chair that was there with metal restraints on it. She felt the cuffs unlock from her wrists, and she was shoved into the chair and locked in, her wrists, ankles, arms and neck restrained as Cameron took the gag out of her mouth roughly. Her restraint around her neck, she noticed that it had spikes in it and that somehow, it was attaching itself to her nervous system. The spikes sunk into the skin of her neck deeply; she could feel blood starting to seep. She could feel her wrists and ankles bruising already; she hadn't even been in the chair for ten minutes.

"C-Cam, why-why are you doing this?" Candy suddenly felt in fear for her life for the first time. Her face drained of color as she sat there. She could feel her breathing hitching.

She then saw Cameron pressing down on a remote control, and she felt the restraints on her body tightening as well as a surging electrical shock. She let out a cry of pain.

"AHHHHHH!" she screamed out, the spikes sinking deeper into her neck.

"You want to know why I am doing this. To teach you a lesson," Cameron said.

"W-What?" Candy couldn't even think straight.

"It's to show you what happens when you pick a disgusting mutie over me! And so you can also see what it is that I am about to do!" Cameron snapped.

"Cam . . . no. Warren was your friend he-he . . . we _loved_ you. He-he –!" Candy started to say. She was cut off when Cameron pressed down on the remote again; the restraints tightening again as she felt another round of surging shocks run throughout her nervous system, causing her to scream.

"He was never my friend." Cameron proceeded to reach over for what appeared to be a bucket of sea water, and Candy felt the water flowing over her head. It was freezing, causing her to break into shivers instantly. It was then followed by another wave of shocks. Candy screamed again, tears of pain leaking from her eyes as Cameron pulled out a large strip of some black material, shoving it into her mouth and tying it around her head to gag her.

"Now, Candy, I think it's time we make a little phone call to an old friend," whispered Cameron sadistically, reaching over and caressing her cheek, causing her to flinch away as she let a sob escape her throat as Cameron pulled out a cell phone to call Warren.

* * *

 **X-Corporation Tower – Danger Room**

Down in the Danger Room, the X-men were in full uniform, masks and all before they were going to take off in the Blackbird. Professor Xavier was going to be monitoring everything through Cerebro while Hank, Jean, Scott, Bobby and Warren were going to be out in the field for their second mission. Scott was going over the coordinates with Hank over and over.

"War, I am really hoping that your father isn't screwing us over," said Scott.

"I hope so too, Scottie, but, he sounded completely sincere when I was speaking to him. I've never heard him sound so sincere in my life before. It tells me he realizes now how badly he fucked up, and it's come back and it bit him in the ass. Now, he's on his knees begging for my help," Warren said. "It's quite ironic actually; that this is what is finally causing my dad to realize that he and I need to come back together."

"I wonder if this means we'll be finding Angelica on that island," Bobby mused.

"Hopefully," said Hank in agreement as he adjusted his suit on his body.

Suddenly, that was the moment Warren's cellphone started to ring throughout. Tony tossed Warren the phone.

"Warren, it's you. It's a blocked number," said Tony.

"It can only mean one thing," whispered Warren, a sick feeling forming in his stomach. "Hello?"

" _I haven't called in six years, and let me tell you, those six years of me not talking to you have been the best of my life,"_ said a voice on the other line.

"Cameron," Warren whispered, swallowing hard.

" _Yes, Warren, yes. It's been a while, hasn't it? Well, let me tell you; I've got someone who wants to speak to you . . . say hello."_ That was the moment Warren could hear a restrained, high-pitched scream followed by a series of sobs that could only belong to one person.

"Oh good God . . . _Candy_ ," he whispered, suddenly feeling physically ill as he felt his knees going weak. He could feel Scott catching him underneath the armpits as he felt he was about to collapse.

" _Yes, Warren. Consider this a little life lesson for both you and your girlfriend. This is what happens when your girlfriend chooses a mutie like you over me,"_ Cameron said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

"Cameron, enough! Your beef is with me let her go!" Warren said, hearing his voice rise in volume as he heard Candy scream again.

" _If you want her back, come to Genosha. I don't know if you've heard, but, I opened up my own private little island for some . . . side projects,"_ Cameron taunted as another round of yells followed from Candy. She seemed to be trying to protest against it, as if she wanted Warren out of it. As far as Warren was concerned, the minute his girlfriend was involved, he had to get himself involved.

"Yeah, I'm perfectly aware! Talk about illegal, inhumane experimentation!" Warren snapped angrily.

" _I'll give you the coordinates . . ."_ Cameron said to him.

"Don't even bother, I already have them! I'll see you then. If you want a fight, I'll give you one!" Warren said heatedly. "Candy, Candy, if you can hear me, baby, I'm coming, sweetie. Just hang on!" he added, hoping his girlfriend could hear him if Cameron had the phone on speaker.

" _Oh, how romantic. It's so sickeningly adorable it makes me want to throw up in my mouth. Just get your ass over here, and you_ might _see her alive . . ."_ Cameron jeered before hanging up. Warren stood as Scott supported him up.

"You okay?" Scott asked, holding Warren by the shoulders.

"War?" asked Jean. "War, what is it?"

"Cameron's got Candy . . . we've gotta get there," Warren said, his face draining of color at the thought of what was happening to his girlfriend.

"We're leaving now; Alpha Flight is going to meet us there so that they can make their arrests on Hodge and Stane," Hank said, and they all proceeded to get to the Blackbird, Hank in the pilot's seat with Scott at his side in the cockpit. Warren took his seat beside Jean, feeling the nervousness sinking in. He knew that they had to get there quickly. He had to stay focused and keep his head clear, but it was hard considering his girlfriend was in the hands of Cameron, who was planning on illegally experimenting on the mutant prisoners of Genosha. Warren knew that if those mutant kids ended up getting injected with the cure, they were most likely going to die because the cure was deadly. Just hearing Candy's suppressed screams through the phone line made him feel shaken inside.

"War, we'll find her. We'll get to her," Jean whispered, leaning a comforting hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze as a form of silent support.

"Let's just hope we get there in time," Warren whispered in reply as he clenched his hands.

* * *

 **Genosha – Cameron's Lab**

Cameron continued to stand there and torture Candy. For Candy, it felt like hours already as the shocks ran through her body, tears falling down from her eyes as sobs escaped her throat. All she wanted was for it all to stop.

'Oh God . . . I wanna die . . . I'm dying,' Candy thought to herself as Cameron continued to torture her violently.

"So, Candy, have you learned your lesson yet about taking the sides of the muties instead of the humans?" asked Cameron coldly.

Candy attempted to shake her head. That was when Cameron pressed down on the remote again, and she felt more shocks running through her. She screamed again.

"MMMMPH!" Candy screamed out behind the gag in her mouth. That was the moment she noticed Cameron switching tactics, and he proceeded to start beating her. He punched her in the stomach and bitch-slapped and back-handed her in the face. She could feel her face starting to bruise as she sobbed and screamed.

"Clearly, you haven't learned. Just wait until your boyfriend gets here. I'm going to do this to you in front of him, so he can hear your screams, and you two are going watch as these mutants on this island get the cure. Who knows? Maybe I'll give it to your friends," Cameron whispered, biting her ear.

Candy shook her head violently, trying to beg Cameron to leave Warren and the other X-men out of it. She didn't want to see Jean, Scott, Warren, Bobby and Hank put their lives on the line.

"You know Candy, for a future business woman, you really are not that smart," Cameron told her. "I mean, working with _mutants?_ Have you lost your head? I honestly thought you were smarter than that to make those decisions, but apparently, your stupider than I thought. You could have been with me, a real man. But no, who do you choose?" He punched her in the face again, causing her left eye to bruise.

Candy's head hung where it was as sobs continued to shake her whole body. She was scared to death. All she wanted was to be in Warren's arms and have him hold her and tell her it was all going to be alright. She knew he was going to be on his way because Cameron was looking for a fight, but, she just hoped and prayed to God that Warren wasn't going to get hurt. She felt another wave of shocks coursing through her body, causing her to scream louder behind her gag. Only one thought rung through her mind.

'Warren . . . help.'

* * *

 **Up next: Genosha Part 2**

 **A/N:**

 **Have a happy Memorial Day to all who live in the United States. And next week is Dark Phoenix premier day! So excited to see the movie come out and to see my all-time favorite saga adapted on the big screen.**

 **Also, be sure to check out my new X-men story, The Evolution Project! Excelsior!-**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


	17. Issue 17: Genosha Part 2

_In a world that hates and fears them, the X-men are preparing for a mission that has got even higher stakes than their first. After having saved the life of Senator Edward Kelly almost a month prior, the prodigies of Tony Stark and Charles Xavier became known to the media as the X-men._

 _Recently, they have learned from Warren Worthington III's father that Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane are planning to illegally experiment Warren Jr.'s Legacy Cure out on young mutants being held prisoner on the island of Genosha._

 _As if things are not treacherous enough for the X-men, Obadiah Stane is keeping the Sentinel robots on the island to keep the mutant prisoners in line. Additionally, Cameron has taken Candy Southern, Warren's girlfriend, as a hostage, torturing her as he made a phone call to his former friend to harass and taunt Warren and the X-men into coming to Genosha._

* * *

 **Issue 17: Genosha Part 2**

 **Genosha – Cameron's Lab**

Candy sat there, restrained in the chair as she let out a series of restricted yells of pain. She felt her head jerking to the side as Cameron bitch-slapped her over and over. She still had a gag in her mouth as Cameron continued to torture her for the past twenty-five minutes. So far, Cameron had tormented her with what appeared to be electrical shocks from the chair, had slapped her and punched her, and had burned her with cigarettes all down one arm. Tears soaked Candy's cheeks as her whole entire body trembled in fear.

Cameron pressed down on the remote again, sending more waves of shocks through her body. She screamed again. Her throat hurt from screaming so much.

"I always knew you were a traitor to humanity, Candy," Cameron said, spitting in her face. He grabbed an empty bottle and smashed it over her head, causing the glass to break over her. Candy could feel her scalp bleeding profusely.

"Candy, Candy, Candy, I was truly hoping you were going to get it," whispered Cameron. "But clearly, you haven't!"

Suddenly, that was when Candy could hear the familiar sound of the Blackbird overhead.

"Oh, I'm assuming our guests are arriving. What a perfectly good opportunity to test out the Sentinels?" Cameron asked. "This is gonna be fun, and you're going to get a front row seat!"

Candy shook her head, tears flooding her eyes as Cameron grinned callously, grabbing her face with his hand, his fingers hard on her cheeks and bruising her. She attempted to speak so she could curse him out, but it was useless. She was forced to sit there and watch as Cameron nodded for Obadiah to unleash the fifteen Sentinels that were on the island to attack the Blackbird.

* * *

 **The Skies over Genosha – The Blackbird**

In the Blackbird, Angel felt tense as he pulled his mask over his face. He felt so worried for Candy that his heart was beating five-hundred. He stared out the window of the jet, hoping and praying to whatever higher power there was that they were not too late.

"Warren, relax. You're not going to do Candy any good if you're this tense," said Iceman.

"Iceman, in case you hadn't noticed, we're about to enter an island where we are unwelcome and my girlfriend has been kidnapped by my former friend!" Angel yelled.

"Angel, don't worry. We're over Genosha right now. We're going to free the prisoners and get Candy out of there," Cyclops said.

"Cyclops," Warren started to say.

"Scott's right, Warren; we're here now, I'm taking the jet down," said Beast as he prepared to land down on the shores of Genosha. However, that was the moment they felt something rock the jet, and the X-men looked out the window to see the Sentinels were firing. The Sentinels looked exactly how they looked on the news: giant, towering purple robots with more weapons in their arsenal than the X-men.

"Jeannie, now I think would be a _really_ great time to do something!" shouted Angel.

"Lower the ramp!" shouted Marvel Girl. "I need a clear view! Iceman, Cyclops!"

"On it, Marvel Girl!" Cyclops said. He lowered the ramp to the jet down. "Angel, fly out there and try to divert the Sentinels! We'll need a clear shot!"

"Okay, I've got this!" Angel said. He proceeded to run out of the jet and he flew out into the open, catching the attention of the Sentinels. Marvel Girl, Iceman and Cyclops went to take their positions.

"Alright, Logan . . . let's hope your Danger Room sessions with us paid off," whispered Marvel Girl as she readied her psychic powers for what she was about to do.

"We've got this, Jean," Iceman said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Bobby," Marvel Girl said as she watched Iceman take on his organic ice form.

That was the moment the Sentinels came into their view, courtesy of Angel who was flying at high speeds to get the Sentinels into their line of vision.

"CYCLOPS, NOW!" Angel shouted.

"I've got this!" Cyclops adjusted the settings on his visor and fired a single optic blast beam at a Sentinel, managing to take its arm off. Iceman fired a blast of ice at another Sentinel while Marvel Girl telekinetically attacked another.

" _Alright, X-men, see if you can take out the rest of these Sentinels until Wolverine and Ms. Marvel arrive! Alpha Flight is on their way!"_ Tony said into the comms system.

"Alright guys, let's do this again!" Angel called out to them.

"X-men, time to work for a living!" Cyclops said as he fired another optic blast beam at another Sentinel.

Iceman and Marvel Girl nodded as they proceeded to take out more Sentinels, their combined efforts proving to work against the Sentinels.

"Nice shooting, Iceman," Cyclops commented.

"Thanks, Slim," Iceman replied as he fired again.

"Alright, guys, I think that's all of them!" Angel announced after they took down at least fifteen Sentinels.

"Okay, good!" said Marvel Girl, letting out a heavy sigh as she rubbed her aching temples.

"Hank, take the jet down!" Cyclops ordered.

"Alright boss, we're going down," said Beast as he prepared to land the jet. The jet's ramp closed up, allowing Angel to fly down to the ground. The jet landed down on the sands and they all exited the plane.

"Alright, first thing that we have to do is split up and look for the prison," Cyclops said. "Iceman, Beast, you're with me. Angel, Marvel Girl, you both go and find Candy, now."

"Okay, let's do this," said Marvel Girl.

* * *

 **Beaches of Genosha – South Side**

Cyclops, Beast and Iceman found themselves scouring the beaches of Genosha as they looked for the mutant prison. So far, for the first couple of miles and trudging along the sands, the island looked like any ordinary beach. However, Cyclops, Beast and Iceman knew that they shouldn't allow anything to deceive them. They knew that anything that looked normal about this place was just a cover-up for the real operation that was going on.

As Cyclops walked along the beach, his thoughts drifted to his little brother, Alex. He knew that Alex hadn't contacted him for the past day or so, which was odd, considering that his brother always called or emailed him first.

"A penny for your thoughts, Cyclops?" asked Beast.

"Yeah, yeah, Hank, it's just I'm worried about my brother. He hasn't called me the past day or so, and he usually calls first," Cyclops explained.

"I'm sure he's alright, Scott," said Iceman, keeping himself in his organic ice form as a precaution. The intense amount of moisture in the air thanks to the sea surrounding them was an advantage for the ice-controlling mutant.

"Yeah, you know, it's just I worry Bobby. He's your age, after all," said Cyclops as they continued to trudge along in the sand.

The three continued to walk along for about fifteen minutes, until finally; they saw something that looked suspicious to them. It appeared to be a makeshift prison of sorts on the island, guards with stun guns outside the building.

"I think we found the place," said Iceman.

"Yeah, no kidding, Bobby; but, we're going to have to find a way to get inside the building and past the guards, so unless you guys suddenly developed a mutant power of turning invisible . . ." Cyclops said with a heavy sigh.

"I think I can arrange something, my friend," Beast said with a smile. He proceeded to just simply walk up to the two guards. He was wearing a trench coat and hat to disguise him despite the fact that he was also wearing his mask and costume.

"What the hell is he doing?" asked Cyclops.

"I have got no clue, Cyke, but, hopefully, he knows what he's doing," said Iceman.

"Well, Beast is level-headed, thank God for that," said Cyclops as he observed what was going on. Beast simply walked up to the guards, who seemed to freeze up upon seeing him.

"Why, gentlemen, I mean no harm to you. We can talk this through civilly. After all, I _am_ a pacifist by nature. So, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way," Beast said in a tone that sounded so simple. The way he was speaking was enough to make Cyclops want to laugh. It was more entertaining than an episode of _The Office._

"I guess we should do it the hard way." Beast simply grabbed the stun guns from the two guards. "I do not know if you are both aware, but, these are rather dangerous weapons." He then proceeded to jump on the both of them, taking them out easily. Cyclops and Iceman walked over.

"What? I _did_ give them a choice," Beast said around a toothy smile.

"Beast, I swear to God! That was probably the best part of this whole mission, you claiming things are going to be civilized!" Iceman leaned over, laughing his ass off. "When you're jumping on top of these guys, taking their weapons away, and you're saying _we're_ going to be civilized!"

"Hank McCoy you son of a bitch," Cyclops said with a chuckle, unable to contain his laughter.

"Oh, you kiss your mother with that mouth, Slim?" asked Beast.

Cyclops shook his head, snickering. He couldn't help himself. Beast entertained the crap out of him and cracked him because while the blue mutant appeared to be feral, deep down, he was a huge teddy bear with quite a big heart. It was like dealing with the Cookie Monster.

"Alright, let's rock and roll," Iceman suggested. "Because if Angelica's in there, I want to get her out of there."

"Agreed," Beast said, and he proceeded to get the doors of the prison open. Upon entering, they saw dozens of mutant prisoners residing there, all ranging in age, however, it mostly consisted of children. It was definitely something that they all feared was a possibility. Obviously, all the mutant prisoners were wearing power-dampening handcuffs preventing them from using their powers. Cyclops shook his head. He could still hardly believe that Hodge and Stane had gotten away with kidnapping mutant children to experiment on them against their will. However, when he looked further into the prison, he saw one mutant prisoner who looked exactly like his brother.

"Alex!" Cyclops shouted, rushing to his brother's cell.

"Scott?" asked Alex. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving your ass," Cyclops said, noticing the lock pad on the cell door. It obviously had a code that needed to be broken. "Alex, do you know the access code?"

"Yeah, yeah, it sounds like one of a phone dial tone. Umm . . . 015-341-1716," Alex said, clearly remembering.

Cyclops punched in the code, and sure enough, the door to Alex and Lorna's cell opened, and the two mutants got out, more than happy to be freed from there. That was the moment Iceman noticed Angelica in her own cell.

"Angelica!" Iceman gasped out.

"Bobby!" Angelica cried her hands on the bars of her cell door.

"You alright?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, yeah, Bobby I'm okay. They-They were about to test the cure on us in about an hour. Stane claimed they were making some last-minute preparations," said Angelica quickly.

"Alright, we're gonna get all of you the hell out of here," Iceman told her. "What's the code for your cell?"

"237-1362-1991," Clarice said.

Iceman punched the code in, and the cell doors rose open. He noticed the cuffs on Angelica's wrists. "Do you have a clue on how to get those off?" he asked her as he eyed the handcuffs.

"No, no not really," Angelica said softly. "But, I want out of these as soon as possible. I-I miss feeling my powers."

"I don't blame you there, girl," Iceman whispered to her as he watched the rest of the mutant prisoners get freed from their cells, including other mutants like Sammy Paré who had a very fish-like appearance and red scales on his body, as well as the ability to breathe under water.

"How exactly are we getting off the island?" asked Jubilation Lee.

"Alpha Flight is on their way; they're bringing private planes to transport you all out of here, immediately," said Beast.

"Alright, that's good," Cyclops said as he stood at his younger brother's side, keeping Alex within his sight. "Let's just hope and pray Angel and Marvel Girl are making progress with finding Candy."

"Alright, let's move out everyone!" Beast said as he led the way out of the prison. As they all followed Beast out and onto the beaches, Cyclops and Iceman couldn't help but wonder about their two other teammates who were out looking for Angel's girlfriend. Cyclops could only hope and pray that Candy was okay.

* * *

 **Up next: Genosha Part 3**


	18. Issue 18: Genosha Part 3

_In a world that hates and fears them, the X-men have successfully rescued a handful of mutant teenagers and children from the clutches of Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane on the island of Genosha, where Hodge had planned to illegally experiment on them with the "Legacy Cure"_ **–** _a cure for mutants created by Warren Worthington, Jr. which has deadly side effects. Arriving on the island, the X-men found that it was partially a trap when they had to fight fifteen Sentinel robots that had been released by Obadiah Stane upon the orders of Hodge._

 _Meanwhile, Jean Grey and Warren Worthington III are in the process of trying to find Warren's girlfriend, Candy Southern, who has been kidnapped by Hodge and is being tortured and used as leverage against Warren._

* * *

 **Issue 18: Genosha Part 3**

 **Genosha – Cameron's Lab**

Unbeknownst to Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane, the X-men were in the process of releasing the prisoners on the island. However, Cameron was too busy torturing Candy to notice what was happening on his island, his home away from home.

For at least thirty minutes, Candy had been sitting in the cold, hard metal chair, restrained and gagged. Cameron just couldn't stop coming up with different ways to torture her. At this point, Cameron had forcefully removed her from the chair, keeping the gag in her mouth and moving her to a medical table with metal shackles on it. He'd locked Candy onto the table and had forcefully removed her shirt by cutting it off of her with a switch-blade pocket knife. Candy's face drained of more color as she noticed Cameron pulling out a scalpel. Tears continued to roll down her face as she felt Cameron starting to slice into her exposed skin. She closed her eyes as she felt that she was starting to bleed, Cameron making deep cuts along her arms, almost to the bone. Sweat beaded on Candy's face because of the pain. The agony she was in made her nauseated.

Candy continued to lay there and sob; her whole body shaking violently as Cameron continued to make deep cuts into her skin. She shook her head when Cameron finally stopped, but he grabbed her face, forcing her to look his direction.

"Mmmmph!" Candy made the attempt to speak as sobs shook her whole body. She was petrified.

"Don't even bother, Candy; don't even bother," murmured Cameron as he touched the strap of her bra. Candy flinched away, shuddering as she shut her eyes. The last thing that she wanted was for Warren to see her like this, to see her humiliation as she laid there on the table. She could feel that she was growing weaker and weaker from the torture as it continued on. The sobs were coming deep from her gut to the point where she felt as though she couldn't breathe.

"This is what happens when you choose the sides of the abnormal, Candy. This is exactly what happens, you stupid bitch," Cameron spat. "You're _pathetic!_ " he added, spitting on her.

Candy flinched away, crying harder as she shook her head. She then felt Cameron dumping salt onto her opened wounds, and she sobbed harder in pain. Cameron then forcefully released her from the shackles and threw her back into the chair again, dragging her by holding clumps of her hair in his hand. He locked her into the chair and proceeded to start the shocks with the chair again. Candy couldn't even scream anymore. She could only sob in pain. Her muscles ached terribly due to having been restrained for as long as they have been. She'd never take for granted her ability to move her limbs ever again. She then saw Cameron lighting up a cigarette, and he pressed it to the exposed skin on her stomach. The cigarette burns compared to the shocks of the chair and the scalpel were nothing. Cigarette burns were a walk in the park compared to the other things he'd done to her.

When Cameron finally stopped burning her with cigarettes, he proceeded to beat her with his handgun he had with him, smacking her across the face with it. Candy's head jerked to the side every time the gun hit her face. She could only sit there and cry, hoping and praying for it all to stop.

* * *

 **The Skies over Genosha**

Angel and Marvel Girl were taking the skies, flying above the island to try and find where Candy could potentially be. Angel continued to have the sensation of feeling sick to his stomach with worry for his girlfriend. He'd heard Candy screaming over the phone when Cameron had called to brazenly taunt him. The fact that Cameron had the balls and the audacity to do something like that to him, it aggravated the winged mutant more than anything else. His wings flapped as he and Marvel Girl flew side by side each other, looking high and low for some sort of sign for Candy or Cameron or even Obadiah at this point.

"Warren, are you alright?" asked Marvel Girl.

"No, Jeannie, I'm not okay," Angel told her, shaking his head. "I just . . . I'm worried sick over Candy right now. My heart's beating five-hundred."

"Calm down, Angel; you're not going to do her any good at all," said Marvel Girl.

" _Marvel Girl, Angel, we freed the mutant prisoners on the island, including my brother, Alex. Alpha Flight's here. Once you get hold of Hodge and Stane, they'll make their arrests,"_ Cyclops said.

"Thanks Cyclops. Over and out," said Angel, trying to calm himself down, but, he found it nearly impossible to do so.

As the two mutants flew over the island, that was the moment a sight caught Angel's eye; he noticed a sketchy-looking building that appeared to be some sort of lab. For the winged mutant, knowing Cameron, he knew that that location would be where Cameron had been planning to test the cure on his mutant test subjects. Angel shook his head.

'Damn you, Cameron. Damn you to hell,' Angel thought.

"Marvel Girl, I think that this is the place," he told his telepathic teammate.

"Yeah, I-I'm sensing it too. I'm sensing Candy in there, and Hodge, and Stane. Hodge is torturing her; we better get her out of there," Marvel Girl said.

"What exactly is he doing to her?" Angel asked, his worst fears confirmed.

"You-You really do not want to know, Warren, but, it's bad," Marvel Girl choked out, the tears starting to come to her eyes as she sensed the amount of pain Candy just happened to be in at the moment.

"Are there any guards there?"

"No, not that I can sense." Marvel Girl swallowed hard as she and Angel landed down on the beach below, walking towards the laboratory. Suddenly, that was the moment Angel could hear his girlfriend's piercing, blood-curdling screams, as if she could sense that he was out there somehow.

"WARREN! AHHHHH! HELP ME! _HELP ME!_ " Candy was yelling out, the words piercing at Angel's heart as he and Marvel Girl walked even closer to the lab, scared of what it was that they were going to find. They were not sure if they even wanted to know what it was that they were about to find, but, they knew what they had to do. Marvel Girl used her telekinesis to shove the doors open, and once they were inside, they saw exactly what they'd been afraid of seeing the moment they'd gotten to Genosha.

The image before them was gruesome. Candy was underneath Cameron's grasp, him holding her with his arm around her throat. Her wrists and ankles were bound up with plastic zip ties. Candy clearly had been struggling; Angel could see the zip ties were embedded deeply into her flesh and blood was seeping from the wounds. Her torso and arms and stomach were covered in cuts that were deep to the bone and cigarette burns. Her face was badly discolored, giving away that she'd been punched in the face several times. And, worst of all, Cameron had the muzzle of a handgun shoved in her open mouth, his hand on the trigger, ready to shoot. Angel and Marvel Girl instantly knew that if they made the wrong move, Candy would get killed. Angel felt nothing but infuriated at the sight. His blood was boiling, and as he looked over at Marvel Girl, he could tell her blood was boiling as badly as his was.

"Dear God, Cameron, what did you _do?_ " whispered Angel. He was so livid he wasn't even yelling, especially as he noticed the look in Candy's eye, a look of pure terror. Sobs were coming deep from her gut. She wasn't scared; she was traumatized. Marvel Girl could feel and sense Candy's distress. She was projecting.

'Jean . . . Jean . . . help me! Help me he's insane!'

'Candy . . . listen to me and try to breathe, okay? It's going to be alright! We'll get you out of this!' Marvel Girl tried to assure her friend.

'No! No! He's gonna kill me he's gonna kill me! I-I just want him to leave me alone!' Candy's psychic voice sounded so frightened and panic-stricken. Marvel Girl's heart went out to her.

"I taught her a little life lesson on what happens when you pick the mutants' side," Cameron whispered sickly; stroking Candy's face with his hand.

"CAM SHE DID NOTHING TO YOU!" Angel bellowed in anger, glaring from behind his mask.

"Oh no, she did, Warren. She chose you over me. This could have been so, so simple, Warren. You could have taken that cure, or she could have picked me. This is all because of _you,_ old friend. It's all because of you; _you_ caused this to happen. Now, I wouldn't take another step forward, because if you do . . . I'll kill her," Hodge whispered in the same venomous, merciless tone he'd used on the phone earlier.

Angel felt the tears starting to fill his eyes as his body shook with anger. "You son of a bitch!" he choked out, shaking his head as he looked at Candy, who was staring at him so pleadingly to save her. Hodge forced the gun further down her throat, choking noises escaping her.

"It's all your fault Warren . . . this is all on you," Hodge said.

"That's BS! Let her go and leave her alone she has got nothing to do with this!" Angel begged out. He could only stand there and beg as the tears threatened to spill from his eyes.

"SHE HAS GOT EVERYTHING TO DO WITH IT!" Hodge shouted, causing Candy to flinch.

"Hodge, please!" Marvel Girl pleaded on Angel's behalf.

"I'm not talking to you, you stupid bitch!" Hodge spat at her.

"Don't talk to her like that!" Angel snapped, coming to the defense of his teammate.

"As far as I'm concerned, buddy . . . I can do whatever I want. Let me tell you, it was quite fun for me to have to hear her screams," Cameron said with a twisted smile, gesturing to Candy. He leaned over and kissed Candy's cheek and licked her face, causing her to flinch away, closing her eyes in ignominy and embarrassment.

"C'mon, Cam just let her go, please!" Angel sounded so desperate at this point. He didn't know what else he could do. "This is between you and me! Cameron, let her go!"

"Fine then." Cameron instantly dropped Candy to the floor, causing her to collapse down to the ground, but not before shooting her in the stomach three times. That was enough to anger Angel further. He ran over and instantly jumped on Cameron, wanting to kill him for what he'd just done. As Marvel Girl leaned down beside the injured young woman, she examined the bullet wounds in her stomach. It was clear that the bullets had hit some major arteries, judging by the way Candy was starting to cough up blood.

"Candy, c'mon stay with me," Marvel Girl said quietly, looking around for something to put pressure on the wounds. However, she could also see Angel choking the living daylights out of Hodge.

"FUCK YOU, CAM! ROT IN HELL YOU FREAKIN PSYCHOPATH!" Angel shouted, his voice shaking in rage, unshed tears threatening to pour from his eyes. "YOU DON'T EVEN DESERVE TO BREATHE ON HER YOU STUPID SON OF A BITCH! NOW WHERE THE HELL IS STANE?!"

"In-In the-the back of the l-lab, preparing-ack . . . the cure!" Hodge choked out, suddenly terrified of Warren, and actually terrified. He'd never seen him lose his cool like that before, not even when his mother and father had kicked him out and abandoned him. Angel let go of him, punching him as hard as he could in the face. It caused Cameron's nose to bleed as his glasses broke. Warren took a little bit of satisfaction as he punched Cameron again, knocking him out cold before calling for members of Alpha Flight to come. He then rushed over to his wounded girlfriend, who was coughing up blood and trying to speak despite the pain she was in. He grabbed hold of her shirt which had been torn off of her and pressed down on the wounds on Candy's stomach, causing her to violently cough even more as the pain increased.

'Jean . . .!' Candy was projecting.

'Candy, no. Try and save your strength! We'll get you help we'll get you to Hank he'll get you to a hospital!' Marvel Girl was telling her, trying to reassure Candy that she was going to be okay.

"Shhh, Candy, hun, don't try to talk, alright? You're gonna be alright!" Angel told her frantically, holding Candy's head up underneath his arm. "Look at me . . . eyes on me, sweetheart! Hank's gonna take care of you! Hang in there, baby! Okay? I love you!"

As Angel was saying those words to try and comfort his girlfriend, Wolverine, Ms. Marvel and Thunderbird came running into the lab, looking as though they had all been through ten rounds in a boxing ring. The minute Ms. Marvel saw the state Candy was in, her jaw dropped open in shock.

"Oh my God!" she said, unable to contain her gasp of surprise; Ms. Marvel could hardly believe the sight before her eyes.

"Wings, Red, get 'er outta here! Hank's on the jet he's waiting fer the two of ya! We'll get these bastards outta here," Wolverine said, reaching over to lean a hand on Angel's shoulder before unleashing a single claw, cutting Candy's wrists and ankles free and being careful to not catch her skin.

Angel nodded and scooped Candy up and into his arms, holding her to his chest bridal style as he continued to put pressure on the bullet wounds. Candy was still coughing up blood, her complexion paling as she wrapped her arm weakly around his shoulders. The blood she was covered in was soiling Angel's red and white uniform, but, he did not care at all.

"No, no, Candy, stay with us! Stay awake!" said Marvel Girl as they rushed out of there. They ran along the shores of Genosha until they got back to the Blackbird, where they saw Cyclops, Beast and Iceman getting Lorna, Alex, Jubilation Lee and Angelica Jones onto the plane. Angel ran over with Candy in his arms, screaming like a maniac.

"HANK!" he yelled, catching Beast's attention. "Hank, we need to get her to a hospital! Now . . . the closest one to home!"

"Claremont Regional Hospital, near Liberty Island; the professor's doctor Cecilia Reyes works there she can help," said Beast, leaning a hand in Candy's hair. "The jet's speeds will be able to get us there in less than fifteen minutes!"

"Okay," whispered Marvel Girl as she and Angel rushed onto the plane to get Candy into the back near the medical bay, strapping her in and grabbing clean towels to apply pressure to her wounds. Candy's face was nearly drained of all color, and sweat was beading on her forehead. Her face was flushed with a fever as she started burning up. They couldn't waste a minute. Jean and Warren kept their masks on their faces as they continued to try tending to Candy the best that they could. Once everyone was on the plane, Hank punched in the coordinates and put the plane on autopilot so that they could rush Candy to Claremont Regional to get her medical attention.

* * *

 **Up next: Failure's All You've Known**

 **A/N:**

 **Happy Dark Phoenix weekend everyone! Despite what the critics have said about it, I still highly recommend going and giving Dark Phoenix a chance. It ended in a way that was so beautiful and full of emotion, Sophie Turner's acting was everything, and by the time the credits came, I got the chills all over my body and my voice was trembling as I talked about it. I still cannot believe how good it was. It was everything I ever wanted it to be; I was left speechless at certain moments, because there were moments that surprised me that shouldn't have surprised me. In fact, there's this one line during an exchange of dialogue between Jean and Professor Xavier that now drives me to tears every time I think about it or say it out loud. Full of heart, dramatic, emotional . . . exactly what a Dark Phoenix Saga should be, no matter what version you're looking at. I highly encourage you to go, and experience Dark Phoenix. -**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


	19. Issue 19: Failure's All You've Known

_In a world that hates and fears them, the X-men_ **–** _prodigies of Professor Charles Xavier and Tony Stark of X-Corporation_ **–** _have braved their way to the island of Genosha, an island founded by Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane, who had been planning to test out Warren Worthington, Jr.'s Legacy Cure out illegally on mutant teenagers and children. Among these hostages were Alex Summers and Angelica Jones, the younger brother and best friend of Scott Summers and Bobby Drake._

 _However, Cameron Hodge had decided to torment Warren Worthington III by kidnapping and torturing Warren's girlfriend Candy. Despite finding Candy in time, Warren and Jean Grey bared witness to the grotesque sighting of Hodge shooting Candy in the stomach with a handgun. With Candy's life on the line, the X-men race to get her to Dr. Cecilia Reyes of Claremont Regional Hospital, hoping Dr. Reyes would be able to save Candy's life._

* * *

 **Issue 19: Failure's All You've Known**

 **Skies above Liberty Island – The Blackbird**

In the back of the Blackbird, Warren and Jean, still donning their Marvel Girl and Angel uniforms and masks, were attempting to keep Candy awake in the med bay. She was still coughing up blood, her skin having no color to it and her body drenched in sweat. Warren wished more than anything that they could soak a rag in some cold water to cool her off. But he knew that they had to work with what they had. Plus, they had several other mutants from Genosha that potentially needed medical attention too. Alpha Flight had taken some with them too.

Mutants such as Clarice Ferguson and Megan Gwynn were runaways due to their families not being accepting of their mutations, and had been living like street rats eating out of dumpsters just to survive. Lorna Dane was orphaned and was deemed helpless due to her bipolar disorder and had spent the past few years of her life locked away in an insane asylum which wasn't equipped to handle mutants. In fact, the asylum Lorna had been stuck in had been more like a prison than anything else. Alex, Scott's younger brother, had been dragged out of his foster home in California by Stane and Hodge officials. While Alex wanted nothing more than to return home to his foster family, he also wanted to catch up on some lost time with his older brother.

Jean and Warren's hands were soaked with blood as they continued to apply pressure to Candy's wounds. The blood just continued to gush out.

"Clotted blood," Jean whispered as she continued to try and stop the bleeding. She had to block out Warren's strong emotions and Candy's pain in order to concentrate on what she was doing.

Warren continued holding his girlfriend's hand tightly in his own. She was squeezing so hard he was losing circulation. He was pressing kisses to her forehead over and over, whispering several words of "I love you" repeatedly in between kisses. Hank came around the corner.

"We're a minute away from the hospital. Get ready," he told them.

Warren nodded, leaning in to whisper in Candy's ear. "Almost there, baby," he told her softly. "Just hang on, sweetheart."

Jean could tell that Candy was still making desperate attempts at speaking to Warren, but every time Candy made the attempt she just coughed up more blood. Jean let out a sigh as she proceeded to link Candy and Warren's minds together by telepathy. What she was hearing between the two of them made her tear up.

'War . . . I-I . . .' Candy was projecting.

'Shhhh . . . shhhh . . . you're going to be okay, beautiful, you're going to be okay. I love you . . . I love you so much,' Warren was saying.

'I-I love you too.'

'Candy, just hold on, honey . . . you'll be alright . . .'

'It hurts . . . it . . . it hurts so bad . . . I-I want to pass out!'

'Try to relax and stay awake . . . I love you . . .'

'I love you.'

Jean's eyes stung with moisture as she noticed the sight of Warren crying so freely. The fact that he was getting so emotional over his girlfriend; it was a sight Jean never thought that she'd see. It didn't surprise her though. Warren had the purest, most golden heart there was in the world.

Before they knew it, they were outside Claremont Regional Hospital, Warren lifting his girlfriend up and into his arms, supporting her head on his chest and rushing out of the jet, running into the ER. He bolted to the front desk.

"Get me Dr. Cecilia Reyes, immediately," he said anxiously.

The secretary nodded and called the doctor down to the emergency room immediately. Warren got a good look around the space, noticing various mutants sitting in the waiting area awaiting medical attention. He suddenly realized that this in particular was a hospital that was a safe haven for mutants. No wonder Dr. Reyes would be working there. That was the moment a stately, Puerto Rican-American woman came into the ER with a gurney and IV. Warren set Candy down onto it as he turned to Dr. Reyes.

"Help her, please," he pleaded quietly.

Dr. Reyes just nodded quietly. She could tell by looking at him that the mutant that had rushed into the hospital was Warren Worthington III. She figured that the winged mutant that had saved the life of Senator Kelly a month prior had been him.

"I'll do everything I can, Mr. Worthington," she said quietly. "And your secret is safe with me here."

"Thank you," Warren told her quietly.

Dr. Reyes nodded and started shouting different commands at the nurses there, pressing an oxygen mask over Candy's face so that fresh oxygen could make its way into her weary lungs before taking her in for surgery. Warren stood there, his mask still over his face because there was not a shot in hell he was going to just reveal his identity in the hospital. If he did that, it'd be a media circus and turn into a zoo. That was the moment he noticed Tony coming into the hospital, a look of actual concern on his face.

"Angel," he said, grabbing Warren by the elbow and dragging him out of the hospital and around the corner where Hank, Jean, Scott, Bobby, Pepper and Professor Xavier already were, the X-men still wearing their masks over their faces.

"Just so you guys don't risk exposing yourselves," said Pepper, pulling something out of her briefcase that she had with her. She handed Bobby, Hank, Scott, Jean and Warren each watches. "Put these on. They should do the trick."

The five X-men each took their watches and slipped them on, instantaneously appearing to have their street clothes on. Scott swapped his Cyclops visor for his sunglasses. They also noticed Hank's appearance looked normal and human rather than blue and beastly.

"Hologram watches; they should allow you kids to keep a low profile and get in and out of uniform quickly, designed by Forge and myself with help of Dr. Hank Pym and Dr. Reed Richards. We've been working on these for the past month," Tony explained, leaning a hand on Warren's shoulder.

"Thank you, Tony," said Jean in relief.

"Yeah, this is helpful," Bobby said with a heavy sigh.

"How's Candy?" asked Professor Xavier, turning to Warren.

"Dr. Reyes took her in for surgery; I've got a feeling she'll be in there for a while," Warren explained heavily.

"Yeah." Jean swallowed hard. "Do you want us to wait in there with you until –?"

Warren nodded, and the five X-men, minus Professor Xavier, Tony and Pepper went into the hospital.

"This is screwed up," Tony whispered. "If there's anyone that doesn't deserve this, it's Candy and Warren."

"Well, Logan, Carol and the rest of Alpha Flight are in the process of getting Stane and Hodge to the Alpha Flight base in Canada. In a couple weeks, they'll be in trial and they'll hopefully be sent to Rikers," Xavier explained.

"Good. But, I can tell you that when Senator Kelly finds out, he's not going to be happy," said Tony.

"Senator Kelly might be anti-mutant, but he's not a senseless killer. There's no way that he would have even approved of Hodge and Stane having their own private island to experiment on mutant prisoners," said Pepper with a shake of her head. "He wants to keep them in line, not kill them."

"But it's extremists like Hodge and Stane who take it to the next level. This is why we must remain vigilant," Professor Xavier said. "Besides, Tony, you know we're going to have to explain things to the press eventually, because they're going to be wondering exactly who the X-men are."

"Yeah, we'll have to figure that out," said Pepper with a heavy sigh. "But, you do know once the press gets here to the hospital, it's going to turn into a zoo. Bottom line is that Candy and Warren both deserve their privacy right now. It's about respect."

* * *

 **Claremont Regional Hospital – Waiting Room**

For the next two hours, Scott, Jean, Warren, Hank and Bobby were sitting in the waiting room at Claremont Regional Hospital, waiting for any kind of update on Candy's condition. Tony, Pepper and Professor Xavier were sitting in chairs not too far from where they were. None of them could sleep, considering the life of Warren's girlfriend was on the line.

Jean was resting her head in Scott's lap, her legs spread out on the chairs in front of her as she tried to sleep. But, like the others, she couldn't sleep because of how worried she was. Looking up at the clock, Jean saw that it was about one o'clock in the morning.

Warren was pacing throughout the waiting room, walking back and forth as he bit his lower lip out of worry for Candy. He knew for a fact that the members of Alpha Flight were sending Hodge and Stane back to their HQ in Alberta, but for Warren, it didn't feel good enough. He'd nearly killed Cameron by choking the living daylights out of him due to how angry he was at that moment in time. If his girlfriend hadn't been laying there on the ground coughing up blood, he most certainly would have strangled Hodge to death until he stopped breathing. He wanted nothing more than to get his hands on Hodge and decapitate him, but, he knew at that point that would be useless. What was done was done. All he could do was stand there and wait. But, that didn't stop him from constantly badgering the nurse at the front desk and asking about Candy's condition, wanting constant updates.

"Warren, sit down for two minutes. You're not doing yourself any service," said Bobby.

Warren shook his head. He knew that Bobby was right, but, that did not mean he wanted to stop pacing. What else was there for him to do at that moment?

Scott currently had Jean sprawled out on his lap, stroking her hair. He didn't know what else he could do either. Just knowing Candy was still in surgery was a bitter pill for all of them to swallow. That was the moment Carol and Logan came into the hospital, wearing normal, everyday clothes and exhausted expressions.

"How'd you do?" asked Warren anxiously.

"We arrested those bastards," Logan said. "They're sitting in cells at Alpha Flight awaiting trial. If they're convicted, they'll be sent to Rikers. Their court date is in a few weeks. We additionally made some calls to one of our contacts, Clint Barton, so he can swoop in and clean up the mess."

"Good, thank you," Hank said.

"Nothing but my pleasure, furball," Logan said roughly as he sat beside Scott.

They all continued to sit there for the next twenty minutes or were growing all the more anxious as time went by, but no one more so than Warren, who was feeling sick to his stomach with worry. Finally, he'd given up and he sat down. But he found he was constantly shaking his leg as he sat there, clasping his hands together hard as he prayed to whatever higher being was out there that Candy would pull through.

'Candy, c'mon, pull through, baby. I can't live without you. You're my beacon,' Warren thought as he swallowed hard, shutting his eyes hard. Finally, after what felt like an eternity later, Dr. Reyes came back into the room, a neutral expression on her face. The minute she entered the waiting area, Warren shot up from his seat, rushing over to her with an anxious expression of his face.

"Dr. Reyes is she alright?" asked Professor Xavier.

"Please . . . please tell me she's okay!" Warren begged, though he had a feeling in his gut that something had gone wrong in the surgery.

Dr. Reyes couldn't seem to find the right words to say as she looked at Warren's pleading expression. She could see that the tears were already starting to melt in his eyes. The more she remained silent, the more uneasy Warren felt. He was hoping and praying Candy was okay. When he'd heard her scream over the phone after Hodge had so brazenly called him to taunt him, he had been horrified and scared shitless.

When he'd gotten to Genosha and he had seen the look of pure terror in Candy's eyes, it had made him feel so sick, so angry, so nervous that he didn't know what to do in that moment except beg, considering Hodge had had a gun shoved down her throat. It had been the most horrific sight that Warren would never be able to get out of his head. He just knew that with Candy, he now felt so stupid for hesitating when it came to proposing to her. The fact that he had waited too long, he now officially regretted it. It was like Scott said. A day could be one day too late. As he continued to stand there, Warren could feel the presence of Scott, Jean, Bobby, Logan, Hank, Carol, Pepper, Tony and Xavier standing behind him. He felt his knees growing weak as the nausea built up inside his stomach.

"Dr. Reyes, please!" Warren pled, his tears threatening to spill over and onto his cheeks as he stood there, feeling Jean and Scott's hands on his shoulders, giving him a form of silent support. He didn't even notice as Scott gestured for Hank to go and grab a wastebasket from the corner of the room in case Warren had to throw up.

Dr. Reyes struggled to find the right words to break the news to Warren and the rest of the X-men. Finally, she opened her mouth to say something to them. "I-I'm so sorry, Warren," she said quietly. "I . . . I honestly do not know how she had managed to survive as long as she did. But she's – she's gone. We lost her at 1:34 A.M . . ."

Dr. Reyes' words echoed in Warren's ears as he stood there, his whole body starting to violently shake as his chest filled with sobs that had to be released. That was the moment his knees gave out and he collapsed to the floor below.

Scott and Jean caught him underneath the armpits as his nausea overwhelmed him and he became sick in the trashcan. It started out with dry heaves before he began throwing up, retching violently as his grief overwhelmed him. Shudders ran through him as sobs finally escaped his throat.

He didn't even notice as Logan and Scott hauled him up and onto his feet after he'd finished vomiting. He didn't even notice as Pepper, Bobby, Carol, Logan and Hank left the room. He didn't even notice as Tony and Scott guided him to a nearby chair, his arms wrapped over their shoulders as the sobs overwhelmed him. He slowly became aware of Jean rubbing circles against his back to try and soothe him, but tears were rolling down her own face freely. Scott had a hand on his knee, squeezing hard.

"Warren, I'm so sorry," Tony said quietly.

Warren could only sit there, crying his eyes out as his hands gripped his hair out of grief. He kept repeating, "Candy" over and over again. When his sobs lessened and stopped wracking his body as much, his head just hung there in misery.

"She didn't deserve this," he whispered miserably. "She-She was supposed to be doing something with her life. She shouldn't have –" His words were cut off as his sobs consumed him once again.

Jean brushed the tears out of her eyes as she leaned her hand on the winged mutant's arm. "That's not how she felt, War," she said. "I-I read her mind a few times when I was in her presence. She'd felt as though she had already lived her life to the fullest because the last few years, she had had them with you every single day. She felt nothing but proud to be with you. She felt that you were going to be the one to do something special with your life. She thought _you_ would be the one to make a difference in the world for mutants, and maybe even change it. She adored you. She loved us. She loved being one of us. Nothing was ever going to change that for her."

Warren looked up to look at Jean, who had a compassionate look in her eyes. "How-How do you know what I feel?" he asked her.

Jean just brushed away more tears out of her eyes as she said, "I know what everybody feels." She reached over and grabbed him by the hand, giving his fingers a gentle squeeze. They just sat there in solemn silence, closing their eyes as they accepted their first failure as a team. It was a painful thing to accept, but, they also knew that they had to do just that in order to move on.

* * *

 **Up next: Moving Forward**

 **Be sure to REVIEW! Also, be sure to support me on my newest X-men story, The Evolution Project.**

 **Additionally, on my blog, I will be posting sneak peaks of the issues of Peace in Our Time. Remember, blog name is MakeupGeek Comics on blogspot.**

 **Excelsior-**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


	20. Issue 20: Moving Forward

_In a world that hates and fears mutants, the employees of prodigies of X-Corporation owners Tony Stark and Charles Xavier have just embarked on the most dangerous mission of their lives. After having saved Senator Kelly's life, the X-men, Scott Summers, Jean Grey, Warren Worthington III, Hank McCoy and Bobby Drake braved their way to the island of Genosha, where Cameron Hodge, the ex-best friend of Warren, had kidnapped over a dozen mutants to experiment the Legacy Cure on them. In addition to capturing mutants, Hodge took Warren's girlfriend, Candy, as a hostage and murdered her._

 _Now, as the X-men grieve their fallen friend who had sacrificed herself to stand by them, our heroes must deal with the public scrutiny of being a known mutant group to the public. What difficult choices must they make as they prepare to face their toughest critics?_

* * *

 **Issue 20: Moving Forward**

 **Liefeld Memorial Cemetery**

The days following the death of Candy Southern weighed heavily on the members of the X-men.

For Warren Worthington III, however, needing to grieve the death of his girlfriend was something that he hoped to be the only intense hardship that he had to go through. With Candy, they'd both one day had gotten into a conversation about how they'd want each other's funerals to be. Candy had said that she'd want for it to be a traditional Catholic funeral service out of respect for her family, but, she'd also wanted to be cremated, too. Warren knew that when it came to Candy's funeral, he wanted to take charge of it, because he wanted to make sure that Candy's wishes were fulfilled.

Needing to sit with Candy's mother and father and explain to them that their daughter had been murdered by someone who had once been her close friend was something Warren hoped he'd never have to do. After he'd broken the news, all he could remember was seeing the look on Candy's mother and father's faces; looks of despair, hoping and praying for it all to be a huge lie. But, it wasn't.

He remembered walking back into the hospital's morgue with Dr. Reyes to see the body of his murdered girlfriend one last time. Even while pale, bruised and covered in cuts, Candy still looked so stunning. It was a sight that had gotten Warren choked up and crying freely all over again.

Finally, the day for Candy's funeral came. Warren sat there in the back of the limo in a suit and tie with Scott and Jean sitting on either side of him. Needing to carry Candy's casket into the church from the funeral home was one of the most difficult things that he'd had to do. It was him, Scott, Bobby and Hank, all wearing solemn expressions on their faces as they carried the casket into St. Elizabeth Roman Catholic Church. Shortly after Warren had said his eulogy – which had ended with his face being saturated in tears in front of everyone there – the cremating portion began. He remembered the smell of the fire burning as the flames warped around Candy's deceased body, burning away her dead flesh. After putting her ashes away somewhere secure, they placed them into the casket along with the ring that Warren had planned on using to propose to Candy with. Just knowing he and Candy were not going to have the wedding that they had always imagined having just further made Warren ache inside.

Now, Warren found himself standing above Candy's grave in Liefeld Memorial Cemetery. The headstone read: "Candice Southern: loving daughter, girlfriend and dedicated future business woman . . . December 19th 1996-November 15th 2018." It was the day after her funeral was over; Warren just knew that as the days passed, he was going to be visiting the cemetery every day.

'Damn, Candy, I'm sorry . . . I'm so sorry,' Warren thought to himself as he stood there over her grave. 'We failed you . . . I . . . that kills me. I'm just sorry I waited too long to try proposing to you. I wish that I had just done that sooner. Scottie told me a day could be one day too late. But, I shouldn't have hesitated. I should have asked you sooner . . . we never even got to . . .'

As Warren stood there, hands in his pockets out in the freezing cold of November, he could sense other people behind him. He knew that Candy's death had been a bitter pill for all of the X-men to swallow. They all took it hard. Jean had cried for a whole day straight. Bobby's face had been saturated with tears the whole flight back to X-Corporation Tower. Even Hank had silently cried as he piloted the jet. But, Warren by far had taken it the hardest. He'd bawled his eyes out the whole plane ride back home. Screw his pride. Screw masculinity. He didn't even care if it had been embarrassing or what he'd looked like in front of his friends. He didn't care if it made him seem weak in the eyes of anybody. He'd blubbered the whole flight back with his head on Scott's lap.

Now, he kept his focus on the sight of Candy's grave, tears continuing to roll down his face as the cold air made shivers run through his body. He'd already placed a single rose on the dirt surrounding her grave, which was surrounded by candles, stuffed bears that had belonged to her, and framed photos which mostly consisted of the two of them. Slowly, Warren turned around to see Hank, Jean, Bobby and Scott standing behind him. He turned back around to look at the grave, feeling his eyes stinging even more. He could feel Jean taking him by the hand gently and he could feel Hank's hand resting on his shoulder. He just knew in that moment that Hank's image inducer was switched off to reveal his blue, furry, beastly appearance, but, he was still in a trench coat and fedora.

The five stood there in silence over Candy's grave, silently having their own funeral of sorts. Sure, they'd had one just the other day, but, they all felt the need to just stand there, united and together. It was a sight that Candy would have wanted to see. Suddenly, that was the moment Bobby bent down and lifted up a stone, placing it down on top of Candy's tombstone.

"It's Jewish custom," Bobby explained. "I-I know that she wasn't . . . but still . . . it feels like the right thing to do."

Warren nodded, the tears continuing to pour down his face as he felt Scott resting a hand on his other shoulder. 'I honestly wish you were here, Candy . . . so you can . . . I just . . . I just miss you, baby,' he continued to think to himself.

"She'd be proud, you know?" Scott whispered.

'How the hell would she be proud?' Warren thought privately to himself. 'I could have saved her. I _should_ have saved her. Did Cameron have a point when he'd said I killed her? No . . . no, I-I can't think that. I can't. It's his fault, not mine. It's Hodge's fault, not mine. He's going to rot in jail for what he's done . . . he's going to get what he deserves.'

"How?" asked Bobby. "We failed her . . ."

"Yeah, but, we did that together," Scott pointed out. "Candy wouldn't want us standing here thinking about what we could have done. She'd made her choice when she chose to ally herself with us. She chose to stand behind us and believe in what it was that we were fighting for when the X-men were formed. She'd want us to continue living."

"No more; and by a sleep to say we end. The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks. That flesh is heir to – 'tis a consummation. Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep; - To sleep, perchance to dream: -ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause: there's the respect That makes calamity of so long life," Hank said quietly. "To be or not to be . . . William Shakespeare's _Hamlet._ "

"Again, Hank, you're a walking fortune cookie," whispered Warren, wiping the tears out of his eyes as he stood there, managing a slight smile.

"But it's true," whispered Jean, the tears rolling down her own face as she stood there at Warren's side.

Scott let out a heavy sigh as he silently did the sign of the cross on his forehead. His father had raised him and Alex Catholic; it only felt appropriate.

"So, what do we do from here?" asked Warren as he continued brushing tears off his face.

"I think that it's time that we continue to make Candy proud. She'd-She'd want us to continue to fight for mutant rights. And Warren, with you, she'd want you to step up and become CFO of X-Corporation. You know that she'd want to see you running a company and living your life, not for her, but, for you," Hank pointed out.

'God, this whole thing is just so unfair . . . it's all so unfair,' Warren thought.

"You know Tony's lawyer, Matt Murdock, is going to be handling it . . . he'll fight the hardest for you to make sure that Hodge and Stane are locked away for a long time," said Scott.

"Let's hope and pray for that," Warren said.

"And besides, in a couple days, we've got a press conference that we have to deal with. Tony arranged it. We're going to have to face the press eventually," Jean pointed out.

"How-How are we going to do that?" Bobby asked. "I mean, the press is going to be wondering who the X-men are. Everyone in the country is probably asking that question. I don't want to give my new classmates at school another reason to make me an outcast. After what happened at my old high school that's an adventure I'd much rather not explore again."

"Well, unfortunately, Bobby, if we end up saying we are the X-men, we're going to have to deal with what will come with that," Hank said.

The five X-men just stood there, finally breaking off the conversation as the stood there silently for Candy. They could only hope and pray that she was watching down from heaven and that she was proud of them and what they were doing.

'We miss you, Candy . . . we-we all love you. Just . . . thank you for being mine, and choosing me,' Warren thought to himself when they finally walked away. 'I will always love you, forever.'

* * *

 **The Brotherhood House – Anna-Marie's Room**

For Anna-Marie D'Ancanto, life just seemed to be getting all the more complicated.

Nearly a month prior, she'd found herself being taken in by Brotherhood member, Mystique, after having run away from her home town of Biloxi. But, one thing that she hadn't been expected was the fact that the members of her team had been arrested by Alpha Flight for attacking Senator Kelly.

Now, she was hearing in the news that Cameron Hodge and Obadiah Stane had been arrested for illegal experimentation, kidnapping, aggravated assault and murder, and they were going to be on trial. But, for Mystique, she was insisting that that wasn't good enough.

As the young mutant teen sat there in the bedroom of her adoptive home, she wrung her hands together as Raven came into the room.

"Hello, Anna-Marie," Raven said. "How are you doing, my dear?"

"Okay," Anna-Marie said quietly.

"Listen, as members of the Brotherhood, we have to continue sending the message that one day, mutants will reign Supreme. I mean the stunt that Pietro had pulled at the press conference a month ago? That wasn't nearly enough. Our message should be louder than that," Raven said.

"So, what do ya suggest we do?" asked the teen meekly.

"You will see, Rogue . . . and trust me when I say that it will no doubt be the most important mission of your entire life. This is just the beginning my child," Raven said with a gentle smile to her legal ward/adoptive daughter. She wrapped an arm around the teen's shoulders through her shirt, a smile still on her face. "But, I'm still hearing word from our leader, Magneto. He has plans for something, something big; trust me when I say that our future new home will be a step up from where we are living now."

* * *

 **Shores of Genosha**

For Erik Magnus Lehnsher, needing to deal with the bitterness that humanity brought was something that he had suffered through since he was a young boy.

Having his family taken away from him at a tender young age in the Holocaust had been a wound that never healed. He could remember his mother's screams when she'd gotten shot and killed in front of him just simply for her Jewish faith. It had taken years for the man to recover from such deep, traumatic wounds that seemed to resurface at every opportunity. However, he felt as though his emotions just made him weak. Now, as he stood upon the shores of Genosha, an island that had been formerly used for persecution of mutant kind, he felt a sense of responsibility to turn that island into a new home.

Magneto wandered the beaches of the secluded island, the waves crashing against the rocks and sands of the beaches. The smell of salty ocean water filled the air as Magneto used his magnetism powers to float along. He always knew that he'd wanted to give his Brotherhood of Mutants a place that they could call theirs. He knew that he'd wanted to give them a home that was a step up from where they were living currently. Genosha, a private, secluded island out in the oceans of South America was almost too good to be true. There was more than enough space for him to build himself a house – or a citadel of sorts – where he could rule over his own country, formed of people that wished to live there in freedom from persecution that humanity brought forth.

'The time will come one day, my mutant brothers and sisters. One day, you won't ever have to hide your powers from the world . . .' Erik thought to himself.

The old Holocaust survivor allowed a bitter smile onto his face as he passed the laboratory that had been used to torture Candy Southern to death. He knew that he could use the metal foundation of the lab and the prison to create a home for himself on this island, where he didn't have to deal with humans telling him what to do. However, he also knew that his Brotherhood were in the custody of Alpha Flight, awaiting a prison transfer to Rikers Island Prison in New York.

As Erik continued along Genosha to plan out his future plans, he allowed himself to reflect on the past two months. Closing his eyes, he thought about what his Brotherhood of Mutants had managed to achieve when they'd attacked Senator Kelly. All Magneto knew was that he had plans to show the senator what it was like to be a mutant . . . to be persecuted against because of your DNA. He wanted to spread a message to the world that mutants were to be Supreme and superior to the human race.

* * *

 **Inside Tony's Limo**

The next couple days were a blur for the X-men. After having come to the agreement that they were going to honor Candy by continuing to save a world that hated and feared them, they prepared themselves for the press conference that would be taking place that day.

Sitting in the limousine that Happy Hogan was driving them in, the five X-men sat there in silence. They didn't know what they were going to tell the press. They did not know if they were even going to say that they were the X-men. But, they did know that whatever happened, it was meant to happen.

Tony, Professor Xavier, Rhodey and Pepper Potts sat there in the limo with them, as well as Forge. For Scott Summers, sitting there in his suit and tie, he felt the nervousness sinking in as they pulled up to Stark Tower. They could see dozens of reporters – from news reporters to people from the New York Times and LA Times – the amount of press that was there was equivalent to one of a movie premier. Bobby was crossing his fingers that it was going to all go smoothly.

"Alright guys, remember, don't answer any questions from the press until they ask you a question when we're inside the building," Pepper reminded them.

Jean nodded, smoothing her hands over her knee-length black dress. 'God, I'm hoping that today is going to be easy . . . hell, what am I doing? Fooling myself? Ever since the X-men formed, it's been chaos. What makes me think it'll be easy?'

Finally, the limo pulled up in front of Stark Tower. As they all stepped out, they saw cameras flashing and news crew with their microphones and note pads, wanting answers on what was going on. Hank, Bobby, Scott, Jean and Warren just walked along with their heads held up high as they walked into the building; they noticed several security guards there, though some stood out in particular. It was just the simple way that they carried themselves and the way that they were eying the X-men as well as Tony and Pepper. A redheaded woman dressed in a black Gucci pantsuit walked up to Pepper.

"Um, Miss Potts, my name is Natasha Romanoff I'm from the Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate. We were hoping to ask Mr. Stark a couple of questions," Natasha said, handing Pepper a business card.

"Yes, yeah, absolutely; after this is done we can book an appointment for as soon as possible," said Pepper with a smile.

"Thanks," Natasha said with a smile back in Pepper's direction. That was the moment Tony took the stage with Professor Xavier, eating a sausage biscuit, as the only thing that he'd requested that morning had been a breakfast from Burger King, of all places in New York.

"Alright, everybody," Tony said. "As you know, for the past two months, we've been dealing with exploits from various mutant groups, such as the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants who are currently in custody with Alpha Flight. Unfortunately, we tragically lost Candice Southern, who was about to become a CFO of X-Corporation after she'd graduated from college. She got good grades, was an honorable young woman, and a person who had had so much potential to be a powerful business woman."

"But, Mr. Stark, how would you explain these so-called X-men? I mean, we understand that they saved the life of Senator Edward Kelly, but, they are not the police . . . they are not firefighters. What gives them the right to do the jobs of so many others?" asked a reporter from the Chicago Tribune.

"Well, that's actually a very good question, ma'am," Tony said. He turned his head to look at his six employees that worked for him.

"Yes, but, Mr. Stark; the suits that they are using, the technology that they have; there is no possible way that they could have just gotten that from anywhere. After all, you _do_ manufacture weapons," pointed out a journalist from CNN.

"And what about the activity that had happened on that island, Genosha? They had to have been involved in that somehow," said another journalist, this one being from FOX News.

"Well, all these questions are valid, sir," Tony said. "However, I for one think that we need to hear some words from one of my newest future employees, Professor Charles Xavier's adoptive son, Scott Summers."

Scott stepped away from where he was standing beside Bobby and Jean to take the stage. Letting out a sigh, he knew what had to be said. He knew that what he was about to say would forever change things for himself and his teammates. But, it had to be said.

"Mr. Summers, what can you tell us about this?" asked a reporter from the New York Times.

Scott took a deep breath, hesitating slightly before speaking. "I can understand why you might feel the way that you feel about the X-men and the exploits that they have caused over the past month or so. It came at a time where Senator Kelly was starting to embark on the debates for the up in coming presidential election which will be taking place next year. The truth is . . ." He turned his head around to look back at his teammates, who nodded for him to continue. They knew what it was that he was about to say to the press. They knew that the public were going to have different reactions. But they also knew that it had to be done. "We are the X-men." The was the moment he switched off his image inducing watch to reveal his Cyclops uniform and the others behind him followed his lead, revealing their individual X-men uniforms to the public to confirm that the employees at X-Corporation were indeed the X-men.

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **We are officially done with volume 1 of Peace in Our Time! I hope you all enjoyed this first volume. As a chapter closes, another opens, as we've got a lot more story left to tell with volume 2 shortly on the way. Volume 2 will be posted relatively soon, everyone, so be on the look-out for it!**

 **I just want to take the time to thank everyone who followed, favored and reviewed on this story. I also want to thank my mentor, friend and editor, MarvelMaster616. MarvelMaster was the one who truly helped me make all this possible, and I do not think I can thank him enough for his endless support. I return the favor by asking of you to check out his head-canon, X-men Supreme, and support him over there.**

 **Like I said, there is even more to come, so be prepared to follow, favorite and review for volume 2 of Peace in Our Time. Any feedback is greatly appreciated, so be sure to review by either posting it to here, or PMing me. Either way is perfectly fine. Again, reviews are highly important to keep this series going, so be sure to! Also, be sure to check out my blog, MakeupGeek Comics, where I've got full character biographies posted on there for the Peace in Our Time characters.**

 **Additionally, be sure to check out my newest X-men story, The Evolution Project!**

 **Excelsior, everyone! -**

 **DC-MarvelGirl 1997**


End file.
